KSCA606 Constructing Identity in Modern China

Faculty of Arts
Autumn 2023
Extent and Intensity
1/1/0. 5 credit(s) (plus 1 credit for an exam). Type of Completion: zk (examination).
Teacher(s)
Mgr. et Mgr. Dušan Vávra, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Guaranteed by
Mgr. et Mgr. Dušan Vávra, Ph.D.
Department of Chinese Studies – Asia Studies Centre – Faculty of Arts
Contact Person: Mgr. et Mgr. Dušan Vávra, Ph.D.
Supplier department: Department of Chinese Studies – Asia Studies Centre – Faculty of Arts
Timetable
Wed 16:00–17:40 G23, except Wed 15. 11.
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is only offered to the students of the study fields the course is directly associated with.
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
Course objectives
Basic compulsory course in the master's program of Cultural Studies of China. Students will gain knowledge of key identity discourses in contemporary China (including Taiwan and other foreign Chinese communities). The aim is to gain an in-depth understanding of the persistence of these discourses from the end of the 19th century to the present - the Chinese (surprisingly) approach the question of their own identity in essentially the same way, despite the enormous economic and geopolitical boom that China has undergone in recent decades.

The course is divided into three blocks. Lessons 1-2 are an introduction to the issue. Lessons 3-8 present individual discourses on examples of materials from various fields (politics, journalism, academia, literature, popular culture). Lessons 9-12 present selected cases of Chinese identity construction and the role of the studied discourses in their formation.
Learning outcomes
At the end of the course the student will be able to:
- identify typical discourses in any type of document from modern and contemporary China
- understand the significance of these discourses in contemporary Chinese discussions of national identity
- to clarify the origins of these discourses in the period of the first conflict and the coping with the influence of the West in the period of the end of the Qing dynasty and in the republican period
Syllabus
  • 1. The problem of Chinese identities: the PRC, Taiwan, Hong Kong and overseas Chinese
  • 2. The problem of Chinese identity in   21. century: between the West and China, modernity and tradition (general overview)
  • 3. Discourse of modernization in China 20.-21. century: the problem of modernization as westernization; social Darwinism and its role in shaping modern Chinese identity
  • 4. Traditionalism in modern China: renewal of Confucianism
  • 5. The discourse of Chinese exclusivity in contemporary China: nationalism, racism and the imperial model
  • 6. Discourse of self-opposition in modern China: "cannibalism" as a symbol of Chinese culture
  • 7. Discourse of Chinese Marxism
  • 8. Discourse of Chinese identity in relation to ethnic minorities in the PRC and Taiwan
  • 9. Case: religion in China
  • 10. Case: Chinese medicine, martial arts and qigong
  • 11. Case: Discourses of Identity in Wuxia Literature, Contemporary Chinese Science Fiction and Other Genres of Popular Culture
  • 12. Case: discursive manifestations in the policy of Xi Jinping administration
Literature
  • CALLAHAN, William A. China dreams : 20 visions of the future. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2013, 212 stran. ISBN 9780199896400. info
  • CALLAHAN, W. A. and Elena BARABANTSEVA. China Orders the World: Normative Soft Power and Foreign Policy. 2012. info
  • BARABANTSEVA, Elena. Overseas Chinese, ethnic minorities and nationalism : de-centering China. First published. London: Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group, 2011, xviii, 202. ISBN 9780415579506. info
  • Worrying about Chinathe language of Chinese critical inquiry. Edited by Gloria Davies. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2007, x, 312 p. ISBN 0674026217. info
  • BARMÉ, Geremie. In the red : on contemporary Chinese culture. New York: Columbia University Press, 1999, xxii, 512. ISBN 0231106149. info
Teaching methods
The course is conducted in the form of lectures and requires intensive preparation - for each lesson it is necessary to read several texts, mostly in English, and for most of them also watch at least one Chinese (Taiwanese, Hong Kong) film (or videos of other genres). The lectures end with a discussion on the topic.
Assessment methods
Course completion requirements:
1) Compulsory attendance (1 unexcused absence per semester allowed)
2) active participation in class
3) final seminar paper and its presentation
4) oral examination - discussion of the seminar paper
Language of instruction
Czech
Further comments (probably available only in Czech)
Study Materials
Information on completion of the course: Posluchači Kulturních studií Číny povinně ukončují zkouškou.
The course is taught annually.
The course is also listed under the following terms Spring 2016, Spring 2017, Autumn 2017, Autumn 2018, Autumn 2019, Autumn 2020, Autumn 2021, Autumn 2022, Autumn 2024.
  • Enrolment Statistics (Autumn 2023, recent)
  • Permalink: https://is.muni.cz/course/phil/autumn2023/KSCA606