Politics of Art: a Cultural Studies Perspective on Modern China
| Module title | Politics of Art: a Cultural Studies Perspective on Modern China |
|---|---|
| Module code | MLM2012 |
| Academic year | 2021/2 |
| Credits | 15 |
| Module staff | (Convenor) |
| Duration: Term | 1 | 2 | 3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Duration: Weeks | 11 |
Module description
This module looks at modern Chinese social transformation and nation-building process since the late 19th century from a comparative and historical perspective. It focus on five thematic key words: reform (gailiang), conservatism (fugu), enlightenment (qimeng), revolution (geming), and people (renmin/dazhong,). The major primary texts (translated into English) are literary and political writings from key thinkers. Class lectures will present important historical and literary background to the period under scrutiny: from the 1910s, through the May Fourth Movement, the radicalisation of the 30s, the Anti-Japanese War, and the Chinese Communist Party’s Yan’an period. This course will provide an analytical understanding of literature’s socio-political role in modern and contemporary Chinese society. There are no pre-requisites or co-requisites. This module is suitable for specialists and non-specialists and recommended for interdisciplinary pathways.
Module aims - intentions of the module
This module aims to:
- Develop your knowledge on Chinese modern history of nation-building from the late Qing to the end of Anti-Japanese War periods
- Allow you to engage with primary texts (with English translation)
- Acquire and develop basic close reading skills and familiarise yourself with both the works and ideas of major intellectuals and key political figures (i.e. W. A. P. Martin, Liang Qichao, Lin Shu, Yan Fu, Hu Shi, Lu Xun, Cheng Fangwu, Yu Dafu, Mao Dun, Qu Qiubai, and Mao Zedong)
- Investigate the political significance of “literature” in modern China, as well as the problematics of literary studies/debates in contemporary China
Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)
ILO: Module-specific skills
On successfully completing the module you will be able to...
- 1. Demonstrate familiarity with the set texts/films and with key aspects of their historical, literary, and cultural context, in particular with developments and debates in Chinese modernisation and nation-building from 1900 to 1949
- 2. Discuss key aspects of Chinese modern intellectual history in the context of political transformation and internationalisation in the early 20th century
ILO: Discipline-specific skills
On successfully completing the module you will be able to...
- 3. Mount an argument in sound written English using basic textual or other evidence
- 4. Conduct archival investigations under tutorial
- 5. Demonstrate cross-cultural awareness in contextualising events and ideas
- 6. Adopt a comparative perspective in understanding modern Chinese intellectual and literary history
ILO: Personal and key skills
On successfully completing the module you will be able to...
- 7. Assimilate, select and organise material in order to produce, to a deadline, a written or oral argument
Syllabus plan
Whilst the content may vary from year to year, it is envisioned that it will cover some or all of the following topics:
- Introduction: Literature and Art as Politics
- Reform – Late Qing period literature and political writings
- Reform – Late Qing Literature and the Political Imagination of Civilisation
- Conservatism – Nationalism, National Salvation and Modernisation in the Late Qing
- Conservatism – Idea of progression and transformation in the Late Qing
- Enlightenment – Revolution of Literature and May Fourth Movement
- Enlightenment – Rise of Vernacular literature and Modern Image of People in the 1910s and 20s
- Revolution – Revolutionary Literature and League of Left-wing Writers in the 1920s and 30s
- Revolution – Nationalist Party, Communist Party, and the Perspective of Historical Materialism
- People – Legacy of Yan’an and Popularisation Movement of Literature
- Conclusion
Learning activities and teaching methods (given in hours of study time)
| Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities | Guided independent study | Placement / study abroad |
|---|---|---|
| 16 | 134 | 0 |
Details of learning activities and teaching methods
| Category | Hours of study time | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Scheduled Learning and Teaching | 16 | Lectures, Seminars and Conclusion |
| Guided Independent Study | 134 | Private study |
Formative assessment
| Form of assessment | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
|---|---|---|---|
| Essay plan | 500 words | 1, 3, 5 | Written and oral |
| Individual Supervision | 20 minutes | 2, 4, 6, 7 | Oral |
Summative assessment (% of credit)
| Coursework | Written exams | Practical exams |
|---|---|---|
| 100 | 0 | 0 |
Details of summative assessment
| Form of assessment | % of credit | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Essay | 100 | 2500 words | 1-7 | Written |
Details of re-assessment (where required by referral or deferral)
| Original form of assessment | Form of re-assessment | ILOs re-assessed | Timescale for re-assessment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Essay | Essay | 1-7 | Referral/Deferral period |
Re-assessment notes
Deferral – if you miss an assessment for certificated reasons judged acceptable by the Mitigation Committee, you will normally be either deferred in the assessment or an extension may be granted. The mark given for a re-assessment taken as a result of deferral will not be capped and will be treated as it would be if it were your first attempt at the assessment.
Referral – if you have failed the module overall (i.e. a final overall module mark of less than 40%) you will be required to submit a further assessment as necessary. If you are successful on referral, your overall module mark will be capped at 40%.
Indicative learning resources - Basic reading
- Kirk Denton, ed. Modern Chinese Literary Thought: Writings on Literature, 1893-1945 . Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1996.
- Joseph Lau and Howard Goldblatt, ed. Columbia Anthology of Modern Chinese Literature . NY: Columbia University Press, 1995.
Indicative learning resources - Web based and electronic resources
- ELE – https://vle.exeter.ac.uk/course/view.php?id=7662
- Modern Chinese Literature and Culture: http://mclc.osu.edu/default.htm
Indicative learning resources - Other resources
- Raymond Williams. Keywords: A Vocabulary of Culture and Society. London: Fontana, 1976.
General Studies and Historical Material Collections:
- Fairbank, John K., and Denis Twitchett, eds. The Cambridge History of China, Vol. 12: Republican China, 1912-1949, Part 1. Cambridge University Press, 1983.
- Fitzgerald, John. Awakening China: Politics, Culture, and Class in the Nationalist Revolution. Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1996;
- Kuhn, Philip A. Origins of the Modern Chinese State. Stanford: Stanford University Press, 2002;
- Hsia, C. T. A History of Modern Chinese Fiction. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1971.
May Fourth:
- Wang, Hui. "The Fate of 'Mr. Science' in China: The Concept of Science and Its Application in Modern Chinese Thought." positions 3, 1 (1995): 1-68.
- Schwarcz, Vera. The Chinese Enlightenment: Intellectuals and the Legacy of the May Fourth Movement of 1919. Berkeley: UCP, 1986.
Revolutionary Literature:
- Yin, Zhiguang. Politics of Arts: The Creation Society and the Practice of Theoretical Struggle in Revolutionary China. Leiden: Brill, 2014.
- Anti-Japanese War Period
- Cyril Birch, ed., Chinese Communist Literature. NY: Praeger, 1963
- Ban Wang, ed., Words and Their Stories: Essays on the Language of the Chinese Revolution. Leiden: Brill, 2010
| Credit value | 15 |
|---|---|
| Module ECTS | 7.5 |
| Module pre-requisites | None |
| Module co-requisites | None |
| NQF level (module) | 5 |
| Available as distance learning? | No |
| Origin date | 09/10/2014 |
| Last revision date | 31/07/2020 |
