Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
- Discipline
- Keyword
-
- Modern and Contemporary Literary Theory and Cultural Studies (21)
- Classical Literary Theory and Cultural Studies (18)
- Modern and Contemporary Literary Theory and Criticism (17)
- Aesthetics and Culture Studies (16)
- Studies in Western Literary Theory (10)
-
- Western Literary Theory and Cultural Studies (8)
- Cultural Studies (5)
- Cultural studies (4)
- Highlight: Cross-cultural Studies (4)
- Issue in Focus: Modern and Contemporary Literary Theory and Cultural Studies (4)
- Studies in Cross-Cultural Literary Theories (4)
- Issue in Focus: Art History Theory and Cultural Studies (3)
- Issue in Focus: Art Theory (3)
- Issue in Focus: Cultural Studies (3)
- Lu Xun (3)
- Studies in Western Literary Theory and Aesthetics (3)
- Aestheticism (2)
- Classical Literary Theory and Criticism (2)
- Issue in Focus: Comparative Culture Studies Conference (2)
- Issue in Focus： Cultural Studies (2)
- Mutual Exchange of Literary Theories (2)
- Review (2)
- Western Literary Theory (2)
- Western Literary Theory and Criticism (2)
- Western Literary Theory and Studies in Aesthetics (2)
- AI—based modernology (1)
- Aesthetic cultural studies (1)
- Aesthetics (1)
- Aesthetics of cinematic violence (1)
- Affect theory (1)
Articles 1 - 30 of 163
Full-Text Articles in Entire DC Network
The Translingual Writing Of Rickshaws Since The Modern Era, Ruoze Huang
The Translingual Writing Of Rickshaws Since The Modern Era, Ruoze Huang
Theoretical Studies in Literature and Art
Rickshaws originated in Meiji Japan, spread across Asian countries, and became especially popular in modern China. They were not only a classic theme in Chinese literary history but also had a great impact on lifestyles and social transformations since the modern era. As an industrial product, an occupational identity and a way of life, the rickshaw constitutes a key entry point for re-examining transnational experiences. Its emergence was shaped by unequal and incompatible conceptual frameworks between East and West. This invention was mediated through conceptual translations, travel writings and literary works, showing observers' admiration for power and assuagement of suffering, …
Beyond Transitional Justice: Han Kang's Literature And The Politics Of Mourning, Weixuan Xi, Sijin He
Beyond Transitional Justice: Han Kang's Literature And The Politics Of Mourning, Weixuan Xi, Sijin He
Theoretical Studies in Literature and Art
Beginning with Human Acts, South Korean author Han Kang underwent what could be described as a “mid-career transformation” in her literary practice, as “mourning” has become one of the central concerns in her recent works. The novel We Do Not Part can be regarded as the culmination of Han Kang's poetics of mourning. Taking the Jeju April 3 Incident as its subject, the novel not only engages with the intertextual relationship between literature and South Korea's discourse of transitional justice since the 1990s, but also attempts to transcend the principle of segregated mourning in contemporary political practice, as well …
An Analysis Of Denotation And Connotation: Contribution Of Lu Xun's Old Stories Retold, Qinghua Cao
An Analysis Of Denotation And Connotation: Contribution Of Lu Xun's Old Stories Retold, Qinghua Cao
Theoretical Studies in Literature and Art
Existing research on Lu Xun's Old Stories Retold has mainly focused on two aspects: what is written and how it is written. Little attention has been paid to the analysis of the denotation and connotation of linguistic representation, which is the medium of narrative, in Lu Xun's writing in Old Stories Retold. “Gathering Ferns” portrays Boyi and Shuqi as two “stupid ox” figures who believe in and practice the denotative meanings of ancient Chinese books, and are thus caught in a double dilemma of language and body. Old Stories Retold also seeks to reveal the formalized features of the …
Reaffirming “Sensibility”: F. R. Leavis And The Critical Community, Weihua He
Reaffirming “Sensibility”: F. R. Leavis And The Critical Community, Weihua He
Theoretical Studies in Literature and Art
With his militant stance towards industrial civilization and mass culture, as well as his adherence to and promotion of elite culture, F. R. Leavis has become a pivotal figure in the tradition of British cultural criticism. However, as the editor-in-chief of the literary journal Scrutiny, Leavis wrote a large number of influential literary critical articles, many of which remain illuminating for contemporary literary criticism, yet they have not received sufficient attention in Chinese academia. In terms of literary criticism, Leavis opposed the application of theories in a rigid manner, emphasizing the critic's “sensibility” and unique gifts, as well as …
A Field Of Cultural Practice Shaped By The Interaction Of Multiple Forces: A Study Of Guangzhou Music Teahouses In The Early Reform And Opening-Up Period, Dongfeng Tao, Yunxia Fan
A Field Of Cultural Practice Shaped By The Interaction Of Multiple Forces: A Study Of Guangzhou Music Teahouses In The Early Reform And Opening-Up Period, Dongfeng Tao, Yunxia Fan
Theoretical Studies in Literature and Art
In the late 1970s to early 1980s, with the advent of reform and opening up, popular music, which had remained dormant for three decades, began to revive and became a pioneer in the first wave of popular culture in mainland China. Guangdong played the role of a forerunner and pathfinder in this process. As a form of mass entertainment culture with distinctive local features in Guangdong, music teahouses offer an exemplary case for exploring the relationships among administrators, the market, performers, and audiences/listeners as consumers in the construction of the field of popular culture during the transitional period. Drawing on …
Biases And Paradoxes: The Politics Of New Aestheticism's Depoliticization, Fang Yuan
Biases And Paradoxes: The Politics Of New Aestheticism's Depoliticization, Fang Yuan
Theoretical Studies in Literature and Art
New aestheticism is a school of literary criticism that emerged in the early twenty-first century. Rather than simply returning to traditional aestheticism, it incorporates insights from multiple theoretical traditions. It critiques social-historical criticism and cultural studies in an effort to downplay the political dimension of literary criticism, instead emphasizing individualized experience and aesthetic pleasure. However, new aestheticism reveals significant theoretical biases and inherent paradoxes. It overlooks the sustained attention that social-historical criticism and cultural studies have devoted to aesthetic questions; it attributes the perceived decline of English studies to the utilitarian tendencies of criticism; and it seeks to free itself …
“Imagining For Delight” And “Gazetteer Of Dialects And Local Customs”: Zhou Zuoren's Conceptualization Of Aesthetic Education Through Nursery Rhymes, Chengzhu Cao
Theoretical Studies in Literature and Art
In response to the mysterious associations and political interpretations attached to nursery rhymes in ancient China, Zhou Zuoren explained the emergence of children's songs through anthropological theories that engage with human auditory development, the instinct of imitation, and the singing practice of early humans. He opposes the didactic and moralizing functions assigned to children's songs and advocates a view of pleasure that emphasizes “finding delight through imaginative association” and personal enjoyment. He evaluates the aesthetic value of children's songs from the child's perspective a, regarding them as “poetry for children.” He particularly focuses on their experiential recording of dialects, customs, …
The Early Modern Literary Purport Of “Brain Transformation” And Its Enlightenment For Modern Fiction, Yishan Ye
The Early Modern Literary Purport Of “Brain Transformation” And Its Enlightenment For Modern Fiction, Yishan Ye
Theoretical Studies in Literature and Art
During the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the imperative to “enlightening the people” positioned “brain transformation” as a central concern among writers. In cross-cultural practice, the integration of “qi theory” and the reinterpretation of neural theory provided an ideological foundation and discursive resources for constructing the literary concept of “power” in the “new fiction”. Utilizing tropes such as medicine, magic, and universal electricity, novelists employed concepts of mechanical force and vitality to explore the human. Through aesthetic composites, they reconciled internal contradictions within science discourse and evoked the intrinsic beauty of science. Liang Qichao's aesthetic integration of “power” …
A Discussion Of The Critical Creative Practice Of Lu Xun's Literary Philosophy, Xuan Wu
A Discussion Of The Critical Creative Practice Of Lu Xun's Literary Philosophy, Xuan Wu
Theoretical Studies in Literature and Art
Critical creative philosophical thinking internally transforms the concrete understandings of the world articulated in Confucian and Taoist philosophy. This mode of thinking constitutes the philosophical condition that makes Chinese literary classics possible, yet it also revels a blind spot in Chinese philosophical studies, which have often remained confined to cognitive interpretations of pre-Qin philosophy. Lu Xun consciously aligned himself with a tradition of literary-philosophical thinking represented by figures such as Zhuang Zi, Sima Qian, Su Shi, and Cao Xueqin. Taking The Classic of Mountains and Seas as a foundational text for understanding life, he undertook a critical reexamination of both …
The Theoretical Connotations Of Modern Chinese Literary Historiography, Xiangxi Fu
The Theoretical Connotations Of Modern Chinese Literary Historiography, Xiangxi Fu
Theoretical Studies in Literature and Art
The study of historical materials in modern Chinese literature explores the theories and methods regarding the formal characteristics, genesis and evolution, and the organization and utilization of literary materials. The fundamental principles of this field the pursuit of truth, the pursuit of completeness, and the maintenance of appropriateness. The “pursuit of truth” concerns the fundamental objective of the study of modern Chinese literary historical materials. The “pursuit of completeness” pertains to its scope and focus. The “maintenance of appropriateness” relates to its mechanism of balance. These three principles act as preconditions for one another, and they collectively constitute the theoretical …
How To Investigate The Contemporary?—Conceptions For Cultural Studies Of Modernology, Ling Yu Ling Yu
How To Investigate The Contemporary?—Conceptions For Cultural Studies Of Modernology, Ling Yu Ling Yu
Theoretical Studies in Literature and Art
Modernology studies human behavior and customary changes through on—site investigation of the social slices of the here and now, focusing on universal human affairs in universal environments. In the 20th century, the academic community proposed that literature was a theory of linguistics and human studies. In the 21st century, it further suggests that literature engages with spatial studies, thing theory, ecology, and cosmology. Modernology incorporates theories from various schools and is expected to evolve from the modern to postmodernity and post—classical narratology. It is also expected to develop into a narrative method that integrates scientificity, visuality, and interdisciplinarity. Exploring elements …
The Cinematic Representation Of Leukemia And The Politics Of Exoneration: Japanese “Pure Love” Dramas As Traumatic Memory, Wei Jia
Theoretical Studies in Literature and Art
Japanese pure love films and TV dramas have a particular preference for incurable diseases, such as leukemia. To view these illnesses merely as a means to preserve the beauty of the characters is not only inconsistent with the plot but also obscures the cultural—political implications of this obsessive fixation, which clearly exhibits compulsive traits. In fact, by repeatedly emphasizing leukemia, Japanese pure love films and TV dramas complete a higher—order symbolic identification with the victims of the atomic bombings, thereby perpetuating the victim logic upheld in Japanese atomic bomb literature. As a unique trauma narrative, these works skillfully evade both …
Title: Aestheticism And Christianity: Walter Pater's Cultural Theory, Li Chen
Title: Aestheticism And Christianity: Walter Pater's Cultural Theory, Li Chen
Theoretical Studies in Literature and Art
This article examines Walter Pater's cultural theory by exploring the relationship between his aesthetic and religious thought. Building upon Friedrich Shiller's theory of aesthetic education and Matthew Arnold's cultural theory, Pater seeks to cultivate an ideal culture grounded in the completeness of humanity through a reevaluation of Greek culture and early Christianity. Epicureanism embodies Pater's aesthetic theory. Epicurean aestheticism promotes openness and inclusivity, encouraging the pursuit of diverse experiences and the embrace of all excellent ideas, including those of Christianity. Epicurean devotion to beauty is elevated to a form of sacred religiousness. At the same time, Pater praises second—century Christianity …
Reconstituting “Place”: Experiential Perspective, Emotional Configuration And The Lifeworld, Jun Zhu
Reconstituting “Place”: Experiential Perspective, Emotional Configuration And The Lifeworld, Jun Zhu
Theoretical Studies in Literature and Art
With the re—discovery of “place” and the ontological turn towards spatiality, spatial studies, postmodern geography, and cultural studies have increasingly integrated Marxism, phenomenology and ontology. The major contribution of the “spatial turn” lies in revealing the revolutionary potential of “space,” “place” and “locale,” thereby transforming the notion of “locale as a site of existence” into both a poetics and a political economy of spatial construction. “Place” becomes a convergence of human thoughts, memories and dreams, with “home” serving as the aggregation of this supreme existence. The poetics of space aims to uncover the richness of this imagined existence. Rooted in …
The Disruptive Nature Of Listening: Feminine Noises And Sound Politics In The Platform Music Show The Big Band 2, Shuwen Qu
Theoretical Studies in Literature and Art
Rock music has been a central arena for the production of noises in music industries. The singing of rockers, carrying gendered subject identities, harbors a wealth of gendered noises. “The Big Band 2,” a variety show launched by Aiqiyi and involving indie record companies and musicians, presents a contested soundscape of Chinese gendered rock noises, creating moments that exemplify the “disruptive nature of listening.” It also provides a critical perspective for exploring alternative expressions of female rock singers and contemplating gender order and social ideology. Drawing upon theories of musicology, gender studies and cultural studies, this paper introduces a theoretical …
Thomas Crow And Avant-Garde Theory From A Cultural Studies Perspective, Wei Jiang
Thomas Crow And Avant-Garde Theory From A Cultural Studies Perspective, Wei Jiang
Theoretical Studies in Literature and Art
The hostility of aesthetic modernism to mass culture has been a central position in avant-garde theory from the Frankfurt School to the October Group. Although mass culture has already been rehabilitated through a re-evaluation and critique of modernism, no avant-garde theory has achieved reconciliation with mass culture. Inspired by cultural studies theories, Thomas Crow argues that potential criticality is already embodied in mass culture and that, by appropriating it, avant-garde art can offer new solutions to art while expressing an implicit social critique. Crow re-defines the concept of the “avant-garde” to allow for a historical narrative that makes room for …
The Conceptual Connotations And Evolutionary Trajectories Of Theatricality, Chengzhou He, Lingbo Fu
The Conceptual Connotations And Evolutionary Trajectories Of Theatricality, Chengzhou He, Lingbo Fu
Theoretical Studies in Literature and Art
Theatricality, as a core concept in drama and theatre studies, has continually evolved as its meanings have been shaped by theatrical practices, socio-cultural contexts, and academic discourses. Over time, its scope has expanded beyond the field of theatre into cultural studies and philosophy. Historically, theatricality was often stigmatized in popular perception due to its associations with artifice, exaggeration, and imitation. However, through the successive innovations of realist drama, modernist theatre, and postmodern performance, the concept has been reconstructed, acquiring renewed theoretical and aesthetic value. Since the twentieth century, scholarly engagement with theatricality has developed along two primary trajectories: the theatrical …
From Experience To Theory: Cultural Studies And Its Challenges Within The Chinese Context, Duan Jifang
From Experience To Theory: Cultural Studies And Its Challenges Within The Chinese Context, Duan Jifang
Theoretical Studies in Literature and Art
Contemporary Chinese cultural studies has drawn extensively from Western theoretical and intellectual resources. However, a key challenge remains: how to effectively represent and reconstruct the experiences of contemporary Chinese social and cultural life, while demonstrating the value of cultural studies in this context through the interplay of experience and theory. This challenge calls fora critical reflection on the foundation of cultural studies in China. With its roots in empirical analysis, cultural studies has developed a methodology that addresses issues such as the relationship between culture and society, and culture and life, from the experiential perspective. The field also incorporates a …
The Introduction Of “Inspiration” From Transliteration To Translation In Chinese Context, Yunxia Huang Huang Yunxia, Ph.D., Is An Associate Professor In The School Of Literature, Journalism And Communication, South-Central Minzu University. Her Research Interests Include Contemporary Chinese Literature And Culture. He Changsheng, Ph.D., Is A Professor In The School Of Literature, Journalism And Communication, South-Central Minzu University. His Research Interest Include Basic Literary Theory And Modern Chinese Literary Theory., Changsheng He
The Introduction Of “Inspiration” From Transliteration To Translation In Chinese Context, Yunxia Huang Huang Yunxia, Ph.D., Is An Associate Professor In The School Of Literature, Journalism And Communication, South-Central Minzu University. Her Research Interests Include Contemporary Chinese Literature And Culture. He Changsheng, Ph.D., Is A Professor In The School Of Literature, Journalism And Communication, South-Central Minzu University. His Research Interest Include Basic Literary Theory And Modern Chinese Literary Theory., Changsheng He
Theoretical Studies in Literature and Art
Due to the influence of different cultural contexts, the process of foreign terms entering the Chinese context is often accompanied by “variation”. The semantic evolution of “inspiration” in the translation process serves as a typical example. The Japanese transliteration of romaji (innsubiresyo) follows the translation of ancient Greek-Latin languages. While Liang Qichao's Chinese transliteration of the word implies a potential contradiction between “availability to all” and “unique genius”, it allows for a broad scope of reinterpretation within the Chinese context. The translation as Linggan gradually establishes a connection and transformation with categories such as “sensation” in traditional Chinese culture, while …
From “Rewriting Lu Xun” To “Patricide”: Historical Investigation Into And Reflection On Chinese American Scholars' Criticisms Of Lu Xun, Shi Li Li Shi, Ph.D., Is An Assistant Professor At The Institute Of Aesthetics And Literary Criticism, Shenzhen University. His Research Interests Include Overseas Chinese Studies, Critical Theory And Cultural Studies.
From “Rewriting Lu Xun” To “Patricide”: Historical Investigation Into And Reflection On Chinese American Scholars' Criticisms Of Lu Xun, Shi Li Li Shi, Ph.D., Is An Assistant Professor At The Institute Of Aesthetics And Literary Criticism, Shenzhen University. His Research Interests Include Overseas Chinese Studies, Critical Theory And Cultural Studies.
Theoretical Studies in Literature and Art
Since the 1960s, Chinese American scholars' criticisms of Lu Xun have experienced a paradigm shift from aesthetic criticism and biographical criticism to deconstructive criticism, forming a homogeneous relationship with the development of American literary criticism. Especially from the 1990s onwards, under the influence of postmodernism and postcolonialism, Chinese American scholars have critically revisited the issue of “origin” and “totality”, which registers a general tendency of radical “patricide”. They strategically consider Lu Xun, “father of modern Chinese literature”, as a symbol of nationalism, and deconstruct Lu Xun's authorial intention with a skeptical stance, consequently reversing the power relations between writers and …
Chinese Neo-Sensationalists' Reception And Transformation Of Junichiro Tanizaki's Literary Works: A History Of Reading Centering On Liu Naou's Diary, Shimeng Gao Gao Shimeng, Is A Postdoctoral Researcher At School Of Chinese Language And Literature, Beijing Normal University. Her Research Interests Include Modern Chinese Literature And Literary Thought.
Chinese Neo-Sensationalists' Reception And Transformation Of Junichiro Tanizaki's Literary Works: A History Of Reading Centering On Liu Naou's Diary, Shimeng Gao Gao Shimeng, Is A Postdoctoral Researcher At School Of Chinese Language And Literature, Beijing Normal University. Her Research Interests Include Modern Chinese Literature And Literary Thought.
Theoretical Studies in Literature and Art
The neo-sensationalist literary orientation of Shi Zhecun, Liu Naou and Mu Shiying basically took shape between 1926 and 1928, before they became the school known as “Chinese Neo-sensationalists”. In addition to overlapping literary interests, Liu Naou's reading tastes contributed to the shaping of other members' early literary views. Liu Naou's diary in 1927 and neo-sensationalist works show that aestheticism, especially Junichiro Tanizaki's literary works, connected their interests. The group's reception of Tanizaki's work was intertwined with personal aesthetics and social concerns; their motivation was generally outward rather than inward. The shared preference for Tanizaki not only unified Chinese Neo-sensationalists, but …
The First Cry Of Call To Arms And Related Topics: From Nostalgia To Diary Of A Madman, Chen Li Li Chen, Ph.D., Is A Lecturer In The Department Of Chinese Language And Literature, Chongqing University. Her Research Interests Include Modern And Contemporary Chinese Literature. Guo Chunlin, Ph.D., Is A Professor In The Department Of Chinese Language And Literature, Chongqing University. His Research Interests Include Modern And Contemporary Chinese Literature, And Lu Xun Studies., Chunlin Guo
The First Cry Of Call To Arms And Related Topics: From Nostalgia To Diary Of A Madman, Chen Li Li Chen, Ph.D., Is A Lecturer In The Department Of Chinese Language And Literature, Chongqing University. Her Research Interests Include Modern And Contemporary Chinese Literature. Guo Chunlin, Ph.D., Is A Professor In The Department Of Chinese Language And Literature, Chongqing University. His Research Interests Include Modern And Contemporary Chinese Literature, And Lu Xun Studies., Chunlin Guo
Theoretical Studies in Literature and Art
There has been little discussion in the academic world as to why the first cry of Call to Arms is Diary of a Madman. To address this question, we must delve in to Lu Xun's emotional-spiritual framework and thought-generating process, which he honed as a witness to and participant in the enlightenment and revolution of the late Qing dynasty. Additionally, we need to examine Lu Xun's understanding of the social structure of the late Qing and early Republican periods, as well as his methods of textual development. Written in 1911, Nostalgia already presented Lu Xun's unique perspectives on social …
The Division And Dialogue Between Cultural Studies And Aesthetics, Xiangzhan Cheng, Jinjuan Zhang
The Division And Dialogue Between Cultural Studies And Aesthetics, Xiangzhan Cheng, Jinjuan Zhang
Theoretical Studies in Literature and Art
Cultural studies have been distancing itself away from aesthetics since the latter half of the twentieth century. As the twenty-first century began, cultural studies nearly became synonymous with anti-aesthetics. In the surge of “the return to aesthetics” in the twenty-first century, scholars from the UK, the US and Australia have engaged in discussions regarding whether cultural studies and aesthetics are drifting apart and how they might be integrated. The relationship between cultural studies and aesthetics should not be one of opposition or subordination, but one of dialogue in which they draw on and blend with each other. This article argues …
Raymond Williams' Significance To Current Literary And Cultural Studies, Ning Wang
Raymond Williams' Significance To Current Literary And Cultural Studies, Ning Wang
Theoretical Studies in Literature and Art
Raymond Williams' Significance to Current Literary and Cultural Studies
Abstract： Raymond Williams was introduced to China in the latter 1980s， and he is still considered prominent in his influence on China's research on world literature and culture studies. Williams' works cover some fundamental issues of Marxist literary theory， such as “hegemony，” “ideology，” “culture，” “materialism，” and “common culture，” and develop the contemporary form of Marxist literary theory with his dynamic construction of cultural materialism， thus bridging Marxist socio'historical and aesthetic criticism and cultural and linguistic issues. When literary and cultural theory is on the decline in the West， Williams' legacy is …
From Cultural Studies To Literary Studies: The Evolution, Turn, And Problems Of Diaspora Theory, Qixing Zhou
From Cultural Studies To Literary Studies: The Evolution, Turn, And Problems Of Diaspora Theory, Qixing Zhou
Theoretical Studies in Literature and Art
As an interdisciplinary theory that emerged in the 1990s, the discourse of diaspora theory has engaged with varying fields: ethnicity studies, postcolonial studies, globalization, and literary studies. With the continuous evolution and deepening of the diaspora phenomenon, this theory has remained open. Cultural identity, as the core of diaspora theory, is emphasized as being constantly constructed and produced by the subject, and being in a state of hybridity, while the traditional fixed and single identity is overthrown. With the fading of (post)colonial history, globalization has risen to the forefront of diaspora theory, replacing (post)colonization; meanwhile, the core of diaspora theory …
Reparative Reading，Postcritique, And Methodology In Literary And Cultural Studies, Ling Yang
Reparative Reading，Postcritique, And Methodology In Literary And Cultural Studies, Ling Yang
Theoretical Studies in Literature and Art
The ongoing reflection on critique in Western academia has given rise to a debate about the hermeneutics of suspicion and the methodology of reading, which finds its origin in Eve Kosofsky Sedgwick’s 1997 essay “Paranoid Reading and Reparative Reading.” In that seminal essay, Sedgwick draws on Melanie Klein’s psychoanalytical theory and Silvan Tomkins’s affect theory to identify paranoid reading as the dominant mode of contemporary literary studies. She also proposes, on the basis of queer reading and cultural practices, an alternative approach, namely, the reparative reading style. Sedgwick’s influential reading theory forces us to attend to the importance of affect …
The Aesthetics Of Cinematic Violence And The Mechanism Of Affect Theory, Qi Gai, Guihai Lin
The Aesthetics Of Cinematic Violence And The Mechanism Of Affect Theory, Qi Gai, Guihai Lin
Theoretical Studies in Literature and Art
Film is a typical affective art. From the perspective of affect theory, the aesthetics of cinematic violence originates from postindustrial “cinematic body” which has a strong propensity for affect. Such aesthetics aims at creating formalized violent images to activate viewers’ immediate affective reactions, thus compensating for the declining affectivity of traditional grandiose narratives and apathetic individuals. The aesthetics of cinematic violence can be explored in the following two aspects: the poetic and the brutal. In recent years, mainland China has witnessed the rise of “brutal narrative” and the construction of localized “affective politics”, which imply the turn of Chinese cinema …
Virtual Heterotopia: The Mechanism Of Pleasure And Reception Of Contemporary Popular Culture, Yanshu Gou
Virtual Heterotopia: The Mechanism Of Pleasure And Reception Of Contemporary Popular Culture, Yanshu Gou
Theoretical Studies in Literature and Art
Thanks to China’s development of information technology and secularization, popular culture increasingly affects contemporary people’s values, psychological structure, and emotional mode. The core characteristic of popular culture is to arouse, engage, and satisfy the audience’s pleasure, which is realized through three approaches. First, popular culture establishes a textual world of “hyperreality” through simulation techniques and provides the audience with an experience of “living elsewhere.” Second, popular culture exposes the outmoded ideology in daily life through “poaching” and offers the audience a channel for self-expression. Third, it rebuilds the textual world through a “producerly text,” so that the audience can attain …
Ethnographic Audience Research As An Intermediary Paradigm: A Case Study Of Bruce Austin's “Cult” Movie Audiences, Kang Lu
Theoretical Studies in Literature and Art
The “revival of ethnography” in the field of audience studies in the 1980s is not only a re-discussion of the traditional methods in communication studies, but also a result of the influence of the “ethnographic turn” in cultural studies that focuses on the television audience. This was in line with the need of film studies in response to the lack of empirical audience evidence in textual analysis theory. Bruce Austin, one of the representative researchers in the field of ethnography, presents to us through his study of “cult” movie audiences that ethnography as a method helps us with data collection …
Hyperspace In Postmodern Spectacle Of Image: A Critique On The Space Philosophy Of Urban Intelligent Surveillance, Zhiwen Deng
Hyperspace In Postmodern Spectacle Of Image: A Critique On The Space Philosophy Of Urban Intelligent Surveillance, Zhiwen Deng
Theoretical Studies in Literature and Art
Artificial intelligence has been widely used in the security industry. Intelligent video surveillance converts data into images on the screen. These postmodern spectacles of images involve daily life in the “image process,” forming an accurate copy and representation of daily life. As a result, a postmodern hyperspace is created. Such a hyperspace, particularly in the capitalist society, produces a split between human beings and their surroundings. The postmodern body thus loses the sensibility of space coordinate and aesthetics, which veils the real in life and causes the degradation of subjects’ professional skills. In aesthetic terms, hyperspace leads to the disenchantment …