Modern Transformations of Visuality in Late Qing China: Gong Zizhen, Ren Bonian, and Kang Youwei Jian Gong A thesis in fulfilment of requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy School of Humanities & Languages Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences February 2016 COPYRIGHT STATEMENT ‘I hereby grant the University of New South Wales or its agents the right to archive and to make available my thesis or dissertation in whole or part in the University libraries in all forms of media, now or here after known, subject to the provisions of the Copyright Act 1968. I retain all proprietary rights, such as patent rights. I also retain the right to use in future works (such as articles or books) all or part of this thesis or dissertation. I also authorise University Microfilms to use the 350 word abstract of my thesis in Dissertation Abstract International (this is applicable to doctoral theses only). 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ORIGINALITY STATEMENT ‘I hereby declare that this submission is my own work and to the best of my knowledge it contains no materials previously published or written by another person, or substantial proportions of material which have been accepted for the award of any other degree or diploma at UNSW or any other educational institution, except where due acknowledgement is made in the thesis. Any contribution made to the research by others, with whom I have worked at UNSW or elsewhere, is explicitly acknowledged in the thesis. I also declare that the intellectual content of this thesis is the product of my own work, except to the extent that assistance from others in the project's design and conception or in style, presentation and linguistic expression is acknowledged.’ Signed …………………………………………….............. Date …………………………………………….............. TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract ii Acknowledgements iii Notes on Translation and Transliteration iv List of Figures v Chapter 1. Introduction 1 1.1 Theoretical Background 1 1.2 Historical Background 11 1.3 Critical Analysis of Related Literature and Studies 24 1.4 Methodology and Significance of the Study 44 Chapter 2. The Modern Viewing Subject and Gong Zizhen’s Poetic Practice 49 2.1 The Emergence of the Modern Subject: Historical Conditions and Features 54 2.2 Gong Zizhen and his Times 67 2.3 Ways of Seeing and Characteristics of Gong’s Subjectivity 70 2.4 Conclusion 108 Chapter 3. Seeing the World through the Eyes of the Everyday: Ren Bonian 113 3.1 From Literati Painting to the Shanghai School 114 3.2 The Shanghai School of Painting and Ren Bonian’s Achievements 132 3.3 Features of Visual Construction in Ren’s Paintings 143 3.4 Conclusion 174 Chapter 4. Visual Journey in Sino-Western Comparative Perspective: Kang Youwei 177 4.1 Historical and Theoretical Context 179 4.2 Comparative Perspective in Kang Youwei’s Travel Essays 188 4.3 Historical Significance of the Sino-Western Comparative Perspective 221 4.4 Conclusion 228 Chapter 5. Conclusion 231 5.1 Introduction 232 5.2 Analysis of Image-Making in Works and Main Findings 237 5.3 Significance and Implications of the Study 250 5.4 Direction for Future Research 254 5.5 Conclusion 255 Bibliography 256 i ABSTRACT Focusing on three important art and literary forms intensely involving visual images, namely, classical Chinese poetry, traditional Chinese painting, and travel writing, this thesis examines the modern transformations of visuality in the late Qing period (1800–1911). Casting doubt on the prevalent rhetorically motivated interpretation of the use of “xiang (象 image/imagery)” in traditional Chinese literature and art, the study offers an alternative perspective to read those images, by drawing upon the concept of “visuality” from visual studies and interpreting the making of visual images in artworks as the subject’s literary or artistic construction of visual experience. The detailed investigations of late Qing visuality and its modern changes in the practices of poet Gong Zizhen 龔自珍(1792-1841), painter Ren Bonian 任 伯年 (1840-1896), and writer Kang Youwei 康有為 (1858-1927) constitute the main body of this thesis. These investigations illuminate the underlying relationships between the construction of the visual, the artist as the viewing subject, and the viewing world, as well as their interactions in the context of late Qing China. Meanwhile, new social and cultural trends were reflected in the visual practices of those artists, including the emergence of the modern subject, the rise of popular taste in art, and the Sino-Western comparative perspective on the modern West during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. In identifying these socio-cultural changes, this study argues that the modern transformations of visuality in late Qing China made an essential, if subtle, contribution to the shaping of modern Chinese intellectuals and the multiplicity of the Chinese modern. This periodization of late Qing China is provided by Fairbank, John K. in The Cambridge History of China (Volume 10, Late Ch’ing, 1800–1911, Part I), 1978, p. 1. ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The writing of this thesis has been a long journey and I can scarcely hope to complete this journey alone without those who have helped me so much over these years. I would like to thank them all here. First of all, I want to express my deepest gratitude to my supervisors, Associate Professor Yi Zheng and Dr. Ping Wang at the University of New South Wales, for their insightful guidance, dedicated support, and continued encouragement. I am really fortunate to have them as my supervisors. Their timely feedback and constructive suggestions at every stage of this thesis have made my writing smooth and enjoyable. I am very grateful to the staff currently or previously in Chinese programs at the University of Sydney and the University of New South Wales for their helpful comments on earlier versions of part or all of the draft, and their insights into and patient endurance throughout this project. They are Associate Professor Yiyan Wang, Associate Professor Linda Tsung, Dr. Wei Wang, and Ms Irene Shidong An, Associate Professor Jon von Kowallis, Dr. Haiqing Yu, Dr. Stefania Bernini, and Dr. Mira Kim. My particular gratitude must go to Dr. Bronwen Dyson at the University of Sydney for helping me with my academic English writing, and to Dr. Emily Dunn at the University of Melbourne for proofreading my thesis. I am also grateful to all my colleagues and friends for their informal talks and discussions with me on the thesis topics: Jacqui Godwin, Tao Min, Bao Hongwei, Bstsy Lau, Li Meng, Wei Miao, Qiu Zitong, Xu Jian, and Tian Mo. Finally, I owe a great debt of gratitude to my wife Zhou Tianxiu and my little daughter Gong Yucheng, whose love, support, and patience are my source of strength during tough times, and to whom this thesis is dedicated. iii NOTES ON TRANSLATION AND TRANSLITERATION All Chinese-English translations are the thesis author’s unless otherwise stated. This thesis uses traditional Chinese characters and Hanyu Pinyin of transliteration for Chinese terms, names and phrases, except in cases where a different conventional or preferred spelling or pronunciation exists, as is frequently the case in the Taiwan, Hong Kong and Chinese diaspora communities with personal names (for example, Yu Ying-shih). The ordering of Chinese names follows their conventional forms, that is, family names first, followed by given names. iv LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1. Riverside Scene at the Qingming Festival, section, by Zhang Zeduan 145 Figure 2. A Portrait of Mr. Zhao Dechang and His Wife, by Ren Bonian 150 Figure 3. The Offering of Auspicious Flowers, by Ren Bonian 152 Figure 4. Loquast and Parrots, by Ren Bonian 160 Figure 5. Peach Blossom, Willow Leaves, and a Myna, by Ren Bonian 160 Figure 6. Peach Blossom, by Ren Bonian 161 Figure 7. Painting of Tao Yuanming, by Chen Hongshou 163 Figure 8. A Portrait of Ren Xun, section, by Ren Bonian 165 Figure 9. Early Spring, by Guo Xi 167 Figure 10. Ploughing, by Ren Bonian 172 Figure 11. Going Home on a Spring Day, by Ren Bonian 172 v Chapter 1 Introduction The theme ―modern transformations of visuality in late Qing China‖ carries the assumption that late Qing modernity not only significantly changed material life in China, but also brought about a profound transformation in the mindset, inclinations and behaviours of the Chinese, especially Chinese intellectuals. In this thesis, I argue that one manifestation that typifies the transformation is the change in modern Chinese intellectuals‘ ways of seeing, and their constructions of the visual in literature and art. I demonstrate this change by examining three kinds of late Qing literary and art practices that deeply involve visual images, namely, classical Chinese poetry, traditional Chinese painting, and travel writing. This thesis is comprised of five chapters. Besides the introductory and concluding chapters, three others constitute the main body, dealing with the transformations of visuality in three late Qing literary and art practices respectively. The present chapter aims to define the project by providing its theoretical and historical background, outlining its methodology, and highlighting its significance for the field of Chinese studies. 1.1 Theoretical Background As suggested by the title, ―visuality‖ is the core concept in my study.