Seeking Pleasure in Peril: Male Same-Sex Relations during the Cultural Revolution

2022 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 61-84
Author(s):  
Wenqing Kang
Keyword(s):  
Oral History ◽  
Cultural Revolution ◽  
Public Spaces ◽  
Chinese Government ◽  
Same Sex ◽  
Research Project ◽  
Private And Public ◽  
History Of ◽  
Mao Era ◽  
The Cultural Revolution

Abstract This article is part of a larger research project that traces the history of male same-sex relations in China during the Mao era, a topic on which virtually no scholarship is currently available. The Chinese government named the Cultural Revolution (1966–76) “ten years of turmoil” in its aftermath. Stories circulate widely about men who were labeled as sodomites, humiliated and tortured in public, and sentenced to hard labor; some reportedly were beaten to death or committed suicide during this period. Using oral history and archival cases collected by the author, this article complicates this narrative about the Cultural Revolution by documenting different experiences of sexual awakening, ingenuity, and resilience of those men as well as their fear, misfortune, and tribulations. Despite all the risks of being arrested, interrogated, and disciplined by the authorities, clandestine sex between men persisted in both private and public spaces throughout this tumultuous period.

The Brief, Tumultuous History of “Big Democracy” in China’s Factories

Modern China ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 44 (5) ◽  
pp. 455-496
Author(s):  
Joel Andreas ◽  
Yige Dong
Keyword(s):  
Content Analysis ◽  
Cultural Revolution ◽  
People’S Daily ◽  
History Of ◽  
People's Daily ◽  
Mao Era ◽  
The Cultural Revolution

This article compares two fateful experiments conducted during the Mao era in China that encouraged freewheeling criticism of Communist cadres: the 1957 Party Rectification campaign and the early upheavals of the Cultural Revolution (1966–1968). Through a content analysis of articles published in the Chinese Communist Party’s flagship newspaper, People’s Daily, we first show that the two movements shared characteristics that made them very similar to each other and remarkably different from all other mass campaigns carried out during the Mao era. We then analyze the differences between the two movements—and their consequences—by investigating how they unfolded in factories, based mainly on interviews with workers and party cadres. We argue that key elements of the strategy Mao pursued during the Cultural Revolution were developed in response to the unmitigated failure of the 1957 campaign and these elements fostered a movement more capable of compelling Communist cadres to face criticism from below. In comparing the two movements, we highlight the evolution of the term “big democracy,” which was uniquely associated with these two episodes, but was deployed very differently in 1966 than it was in 1957.

scholarly journals Curtains Up! Shifting Emotional Styles in Gay Men's Venues Since the 1950s

2017 ◽  
Vol 10 (1–2) ◽  
pp. 57
Author(s):  
Benno Gammerl
Keyword(s):  
Spatial Variation ◽  
Everyday Life ◽  
Oral History ◽  
Affect Theory ◽  
West Germany ◽  
Male Homosexuality ◽  
Same Sex ◽  
History Of ◽  
The 1950S ◽  
Oral History Interviews

This opinion piece enquires into the history of male homosexuality in West Germany since the 1950s and focuses on the transition from the homophile bar to the gay disco as a prototypical meeting place for same-sex desiring men. Which emotional shifts did this spatial variation entail? Based on oral history interviews and gay magazines, the analysis explores intricate changes in queer everyday life beyond the all too simple supposition that closeted shame was supplanted by openly gay pride. In addition, the study shows on a methodological level that the allegedly antagonistic approaches in emotion research – constructionism, praxeology, affect-theory and phenomenology – can actually be fruitfully combined with each other, especially when it comes to analysing the interplay between spaces and feelings.

«(Великая) культурная революция» в приграничных к СССР районах КНР: ХулунБуир, провинция Хэйлунцзян (1966–1976 гг.)

2020 ◽  
pp. 127-134
Author(s):  
Ochirov Ts. Solbonovich ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Revolution ◽  
Industrial Development ◽  
Political Campaigns ◽  
Contemporary History ◽  
Initial Stage ◽  
History Of ◽  
Oriental Studies ◽  
Two Stages ◽  
The Given ◽  
The Cultural Revolution

The research of the problems of the contemporary history of the NorthEastern China including the analysis of ideological and political campaigns of the second half of the XX century is one of the high-potential fields of the Oriental studies in our country. The article focuses on the period of the (Great) ‘Cultural Revolution’ (1966–1976) at bordering USSR Chinese regions — Heilongjiang province and Khulun-Buir aimak of the autonomous region of Inner Mongolia. The goals of the study are set in concurrence with chronological order of the events: the ‘cultural revolution’ in the above mentioned regions had two stages. The study is based on the works of the Chinese historians. The given research highlights the specific features of the initial stage of the “cultural revolution” including the criticism of the party officials, establishment of revolution committees and running a political campaign ‘vasu’; considers the Soviet-Chinese conflict at the Daman island in 1969 to be a factor in the following political stabilization of the bordering territories; examines the movement for restoration of the party apparatus and the boost in the industrial development in 1970s of the last century.

A Recent Movement to Redefine the Role and Status of Women

1977 ◽  
Vol 71 ◽  
pp. 591-597 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elisabeth Croll
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Revolution ◽  
Women's Movement ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
Self Image ◽  
History Of ◽  
Stated Time ◽  
Women's Role ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Status Of Women ◽  
The Cultural Revolution

At the outset of the recent anti-Confucian and Lin Piao campaign it was forecast that this movement would “ surely create still more •r favourable conditions for the emancipation of women.” x To create conditions advantageous to women the campaign set out to identify the obstacles inhibiting the redefinition of the role and status of women, j The identification of problem areas is not a new element in the history of the women's movement, indeed the problems have been stated time and again. The significance of this campaign lies in its concentrated and analytical attempt to integrate the redefinition of the female role with a nation-wide effort to change the self-image and expectations of both men and women. In this it provides a contrast with the strategy of the previous national campaign, the Cultural Revolution. Historically the women's movement has been very much concerned with raising the confidence of women in their own individual and collective abilities and translating the individual experience of suppression into a coherent analysis of oppression, but there is evidence to suggest that there was too little attention given to the position of women in the Cultural Revolution. For instance many associations and enterprises encouraged their members to believe that so long as overall revolutionary aims were fulfilled, there was no need to pay” particular attention to the position of women.2 The recent campaign and its application to practical problems among both men and women is a new recognition that because of their history of oppression it is still necessary to pay special attention to the restraints that continue to hinder the redefinition of women's role and status in society.

scholarly journals MENGLONGSHI 朦胧诗DAN REVOLUSI KEBUDAYAAN CINA

2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 84
Author(s):  
Rahadjeng Pulungsari
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Revolution ◽  
Chinese Government ◽  
New Type ◽  
The Government ◽  
Bei Dao ◽  
The Cultural Revolution

<p>Misty poetry or 朦胧诗 <em>menglongshi</em> is a poem that appeared in the era of the 70s during the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976). The emergence of a new kind of poetry that is different from the previous poem marks a new way of writing poetry in China. Its uniqueness is in wordplay, metaphor, synesthesia, and symbols that are not open to its meaning. This new type of Misty poem also received attention from the Chinese government, because behind the symbols and sequence of sentences contain thoughts that are considered not in accordance with the government. Among these Misty wing poets, Bei Dao and Gu Cheng were two important poets. This paper reviews two poems of Bei Dao and two poems by Gu Cheng on the intrinsic element that contains imagery and style of language to understand the meaning. Furthermore, In order to support the analysis, this research also reviews the extrinsic elements to gain the whole meaning of the poetry. Therefore, the explanation of the Cultural Revolution is very important for this analysis. This analysis will explain how this Misty poems play an important role to explain the Cultural Revolution through the works of Bei Dao and Gu Cheng.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p class="JudulAbstrakKeyword"> </p>

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