Abstract This paper examines Shanghai's modernist literary movement popularly associated with the interval of 1917 to 1937. A second topic is introduced of how Ja Bin's novel of 1947, "Cold Night", describes the plight of the individual in relation to his or her connection to the state during the Sino-Japanese War, which inflicted such widespread and extreme suffering and destruction in China.
Outline:
Introduction
Lee, Shih and What Happened in Shanghai
"Cold Nights"
Concluding Discussion
From the Paper "Literary modernism in Shanghai, as a 'movement' evolving between 1917 and 1937, continues to fascinate scholars of literature as much as those of modern Chinese history. Indeed, pre-World War II Shanghai continues to intrigue a variety of Westerners in particular as shown by a strong tourism industry of the present, visitors wishing to see what survives of "old" Shanghai, meaning the world of China's westernized elite, Chiang Kai Shek, or where the Soong Sisters liked to take cocktails in the evenings on visits, there. What some Chinese have regarded as run down, pre-War hotels and other structures of the past hold a powerful romantic or nostalgia appeal to visitors that may or may not have much to do with what Shanghai's literary scene was like through the 1920s and 1930s."
Mao, Nathan. "Pa Chin's Journey in Sentiment from Hope to Despair." Journal of the Chinese
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Shih, Shu-meih. The Lure of the Modern - Writing Modernism in Semi-Colonial China, 1917-
1937. Berkeley Interdisciplinary Studies of China Series No. 1. Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press, 2001.
Tang, Xiaobing. "The Last Tubercular in Modern Chinese Literature - on Ba Jin's Cold
Nights," in Chinese Modernism - the Heroic and the Quotidian. Durham: Duke University Press, 2000, 131-160.
& course materials, University of Toronto, 2006-2007.
Abstract The role of the supernatural in the affairs of the living, as a Chineseliterary and cultural theme, is discussed with reference to "Dream of the Red Chamber", "Six Records of a Floating Life", "The Death of Woman Wang", and the works of Yuan Mei. It is emphasized that the supernatural was regarded as a natural and recurring set of forces having effect in the temporal, material world.
Abstract This paper considers "Modernism" and "Imagism" as literary movements and includes their defining characteristics, origins, writers associated with the movements such as Ezra Pound, Amy Lowell, Harriet Monroe, James Joyce, Virginia Woolf and others. The paper describes the development of each movement in the 20th Century.
From the Paper "At the turn of the twentieth century, the literary scene in both the United States and Europe began to undergo a significant transformation. The experience of World War I further fueled changes in literary conventions as writers and critics began to turn away from the traditions created during the Victorian and Edwardian eras and instituted a new narrative structure in both the poetic and prose forms."
Abstract This paper examines how few topics capture the attention of academics and non-academics in quite the same way as the psyche of the modern man. That is to say, people in the contemporary age tend to see the world around them in ways that would have been utterly inconceivable to their forebears. With that in mind, the paper explores four literary works; Shakespeare's "Hamlet," Walt Whitman's "Song of Myself," Nathaniel Hawthorne's "Young Goodman Brown" and Tayeb Salih's "Season of Migration to the North." The paper notes how each of them emphasizes a modern conception of man which places humankind at the center of the cosmos, thereby displacing God.
Abstract This paper examines several themes in French intellectual and literary history and looks at the work of Proust, Surrealist writers and male and female writers. Literary quotations are in French. It also discusses how the literature is related to modernism.
Abstract This essay examines media coverage in China. The material examined is primarily the media log, which is included in the appendix of the paper. The examination looks at media coverage over a five day period of time and the focus of the coverage is on foreign relations and international co-operation, modernization and development.
From the Paper "China does not have a free press. This means that the media is directly controlled by the Government (Falkenheim 1). This government controlled media tends to be particularly interested in two types of issues. These issues are foreign relations and international co-operation and modernization and development. Foreign relations and international co-operation seem to be the most common issues in the Chinese media. A four day examination of the major issues in the People's Daily.com found that 28.5 per cent of the stories focused on issues related to foreign relations and international co-operation (Appendix 1)."
Abstract The paper discusses the Chinese market which is rapidly changing in light of the increasingly global market place. The paper states that the economic boom in China's urban areas is creating a new consumer culture where the consumer has more disposable income, which has affected consumer preferences within the Chinese marketplace. The paper states that the result is that a sophisticated Chinese consumer is emerging and foreign companies need to market to their sophisticated needs, while at the same time marketing to the general population's needs. The paper states that the most effective way for a company to build a strong brand name in the rapidly emerging Chinese market is to adapt itself to the rapidly changing Chinese culture. The paper concludes that despite the numerous challenges that the Chinese market presents, a company can be successful if it spends the time and resources necessary to gain an in-depth understanding of the local culture and the Chinese consumer's attitudes and thus becomes prepared to cope with the many unexpected intricacies of the Chinese marketplace.
Outline:
Introduction
Understanding Cultural Issues
Collective Society
Brand Perception
Language
Aesthetic Sense
Conclusion
From the Paper "The Chinese people carry with them a strong aesthetic sense, based on their perceptions of nature. To the Chinese consumer, in general, images of the natural form are highly attractive. For example, mountains and animals are often used in association with brand names in order to create attractive brand imagery and visual displays. On the other hand, abstract symbols are not favored as they are inconsistent with the Chinese cultural preference for natural aesthetics. Further more, the marketer needs to understand that the Chinese people enjoy complicated forms and shapes and certain colors. For example, the color red is seen as being the most cheerful color and thus can be successfully used to attract people's attention. Another example is the Chinese preference for peaceful imagery, largely a result of the influence of such religions as Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism. When a company is designing a strategy for marketing their brand in the Chinese marketplace, all of these aesthetic considerations must be made. Therefore, it is important to use specific colors and imagery in order to strengthen the brand's market presence and thus increase overall company profits."
Abstract This essay generally discusses the concept of Postmodernism. It moves through basic attributes of Postmodernism and assesses the movement's originality by comparing passages and quotes from both Postmodernist and Modernist authors, including James Joyce, ee cummings, Eudora Welty, Truman Capote, William Carlos Williams, Jorge Luis Borges, Robert Frost, John Steinbeck, Joseph Heller and Kurt Vonnegut.
From the Paper "Postmodernism as a literary movement began after World War II, following a long era of the Modernist period. Both Modernism and Postmodernism are typically characterized as the "playful" eras because they played with, or discarded, the Victorian ideas of "how art should be made, consumed, and what it should mean" (Klages). With the end of the conventional rules of literature, the Postmodernists prided themselves on being the celebrators of nothingness, innovative and spontaneously creative. While individual writers may have achieved these goals in their own works, as a whole, the movement was not an all-original upheaval. Postmodernism took not only its name, but many of its elements, from Modernism. In one way or another, the rejection of traditional concepts about point-of-view, the shift of emphasis from meaning to method, and the variations of disunity and unity in the work were all transmutations of Modernism."
Abstract This paper explores the relationship between Chinese religious, philosophical and political ideas as they have impacted Chinese music. It discusses Buddhist, Daoist and Communist thinking as it affected the composition and performance of Chinese Music. The paper addresses archaeological finds, the influence of yin and yang and Chinese ideas of harmony and pitch.
Abstract Summary: This paper is on Chinese acupuncture. Chinese medicine in general and acupuncture in particular are based on assumptions not found in western medicine. In the West, medicine considers cause and effect, as with a virus leading to disease. Chinese acupuncture is based on forces of yin and yang.
Abstract In this article, the writer discusses what it means for the child of a Chinese family to be a first generation Chinese American. For this study, the writer uses information presented in Jade Snow Wong's book, 'Fifth Chinese Daughter'. Further, the writer examines how the assimilation process may change family values.
From the Paper "In Jade Snow Wong's memoir 'Fifth Chinese Daughter' the author tells the story of one Chinese family's adjustment to life in the United States. Told from the point of view of the family's fifth daughter, Jade Snow, the book examines not only the way in which two different cultures clash, but how two generations of the same family might be at odds over what path in life is most appropriate. Indeed, 'Fifth Chinese Daughter' is an exploration of how family values and culture are affected when the ... "
Abstract The paper discusses how recent Chinese blockbusters such as "Crouching Tiger," "Hidden Dragon" and "Hero" are examples of the popular resurgence of classical Chinese culture and mythology in post-Cultural Revolution China. The paper explains that after decades of effort by the communist authorities to wipe out all traces of traditional culture, national and international fascination with the beauty and romance of Chinese history and myth is stronger than ever. The paper relates that during the Cultural Revolution, not only were artists persecuted for creating 'reactionary' or 'traditional' art, anything of beauty was thought of as decadent and even flower gardens were destroyed."
This paper looks at the actual use of Chinese address terms in various interpersonal relations, the grammatical status of the terms of address, and the condition(s) for their occurrence in Chinese.
Abstract This paper lexamines Chinese address terms, their grammatical nature, usage, history of their use, similarities to other languages, and the social dynamics involved in their use. Through the examination of exact terms, the author demonstrates to the reader, the different ways that these terms can be used, depending upon the audience being addressed.
From the Paper "The extension of kinship terms to non-kin persons like categories 6 and 7 has the goal in Chinese communities of socializing the young into respect for their elders and care for their young. Wu says, ?extending the family relationships to outsiders thus fulfills the goal of "one family under the sky" (tianxia yijia)? (1989).Used by the speaker of these terms implies that the rules of behavior are extended to the addressee; or they might even by said to be imposed upon the addressee. If the addressee feels uncomfortable, he can decline the term of address applied to him in this particular relationship. This can happen when the addressee is genuinely modest or when he senses some degree of insincerity in the act. Usually the socializer who confers the address-form is a parent or a caretaker of the child (Hong 1991). But the same discomfort can occur when the term is inconsistent with the addressee's sense of camaraderie."
Abstract McDonald's is the largest food service retailer in the world with more than 30,000 restaurants in 121 countries. This paper explores the economic impact of McDonald's entering the Chinese market. The two main economic impacts discussed are employment and the encouraging of greater foreign trade and investment. It also briefly describes the economic collaboration between America and China, the restaurant industry in China, and the goals that McDonald's has for the Chinese Market.
From the Paper "Every new McDonald's Restaurant creates at least 100 new job opportunities depending on the size of the store. So by 2013 McDonalds would have created at least 100,000 more jobs for China's economy. In addition, McDonald's provides its employees with an opportunity to advance in the organization, McDonald's Restaurants offers comprehensive training programs to all staff levels and is committed to promoting from within. (http://www.sjross.com/mcdonalds.html) This commitment provides workers with increased pay and training. "
Abstract This is a textual exegesis of classical text in Chinese philosophy. This text is taken from the classic of Chinese philosophy known as "The Book of Changes". The paper reveals some of the reasons for the popularity of the "Way of Changes" when it first originated.
