scholarly journals Chinese Narratives of "National Humiliation" and Japan's Role in the Construction of China's National Identity, 1915 to the early 2000s

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Boyang Li

<p>The sense of national humiliation in China derives from a huge psychological gap between a glorious Empire and a peripheral nation-state which invaded by foreign imperialists in the 19th century and the early 20th century. This gap let Chinese people tend to define the period from 1840s to 1940s as the “Century of National Humiliation”. Although, Chinese people suffer a lot during this “Century”, direct experience and the meaning attached it are not the same. Apart from history itself, this thesis argues that narratives of national humiliation are significant in constructing China’s national identity. In this sense, it will focus on China’s humiliation narratives in different periods, and try to find out what kind of role Japan plays in the construction of China’s national identity. In the first place, this thesis will focus on the narratives of humiliation/victim in different periods of China since its popularization in 1915, and try to give a comprehensive picture of the origin and evolution of this narrative. More specifically, it will examine Chinese humiliation narratives in the following three main periods chronologically: the origins and evolution of “national humiliation” in the pre-1949 era, the absence of “national humiliation” from the 1950s to the 1980s, and the reinvention of “national humiliation” in the post-1989 era. It argues that the narratives of the national past help construct China’s identities in different periods with different meanings. In the second place, this thesis examines not only the discourse of humiliation per se, but also the role that Japan assumes in both victim narratives and the none-victim narratives, and will utilize a social “self/other” approach to analyze Japan’s role in the construction of Chinese national identity. Overall, looking back on Chinese humiliation narratives in three main periods, this thesis concludes that China's national humiliation discourse is an integral part of the shaping of national identity and Japan plays an important role in this process. It also finds out that there is no certain consistency in the interpretations of the national humiliation throughout the last 100 years in China. The national humiliation discourse had once disappeared in China during Mao’s era from 1950s to 1980s. However, whether humiliation discourse dominants Chinese civil society or not, the ruling governments always play an essential role in shaping the nation’s identity. Besides, Japan has been an indispensable “other” in China’s construction of national identity. The popularization and intensification of humiliation discourse in China have always associated with anti-Japanese sentiments. Therefore, in Chinese context, Japan always assumes the role as an “enemy” when the humiliation/victim narrative dominates the civil society.</p>

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Boyang Li

<p>The sense of national humiliation in China derives from a huge psychological gap between a glorious Empire and a peripheral nation-state which invaded by foreign imperialists in the 19th century and the early 20th century. This gap let Chinese people tend to define the period from 1840s to 1940s as the “Century of National Humiliation”. Although, Chinese people suffer a lot during this “Century”, direct experience and the meaning attached it are not the same. Apart from history itself, this thesis argues that narratives of national humiliation are significant in constructing China’s national identity. In this sense, it will focus on China’s humiliation narratives in different periods, and try to find out what kind of role Japan plays in the construction of China’s national identity. In the first place, this thesis will focus on the narratives of humiliation/victim in different periods of China since its popularization in 1915, and try to give a comprehensive picture of the origin and evolution of this narrative. More specifically, it will examine Chinese humiliation narratives in the following three main periods chronologically: the origins and evolution of “national humiliation” in the pre-1949 era, the absence of “national humiliation” from the 1950s to the 1980s, and the reinvention of “national humiliation” in the post-1989 era. It argues that the narratives of the national past help construct China’s identities in different periods with different meanings. In the second place, this thesis examines not only the discourse of humiliation per se, but also the role that Japan assumes in both victim narratives and the none-victim narratives, and will utilize a social “self/other” approach to analyze Japan’s role in the construction of Chinese national identity. Overall, looking back on Chinese humiliation narratives in three main periods, this thesis concludes that China's national humiliation discourse is an integral part of the shaping of national identity and Japan plays an important role in this process. It also finds out that there is no certain consistency in the interpretations of the national humiliation throughout the last 100 years in China. The national humiliation discourse had once disappeared in China during Mao’s era from 1950s to 1980s. However, whether humiliation discourse dominants Chinese civil society or not, the ruling governments always play an essential role in shaping the nation’s identity. Besides, Japan has been an indispensable “other” in China’s construction of national identity. The popularization and intensification of humiliation discourse in China have always associated with anti-Japanese sentiments. Therefore, in Chinese context, Japan always assumes the role as an “enemy” when the humiliation/victim narrative dominates the civil society.</p>


1998 ◽  
Vol 6 (4) ◽  
pp. 459-474 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lindsay Paterson

The creation of a Scottish parliament in 1999 will crystallize a cultural crisis for Scottish higher education. Scottish universities retained their autonomy after the 18th-century union between Scotland and England because the union was about high politics rather than the affairs of civil society and culture. Unlike in England, the universities developed in close relationship with Scottish agencies of the state during the 19th century, and these agencies also built up a system of non-university higher education colleges. In the 20th century, the universities (and later some of the colleges) sought to detach themselves from Scottish culture and politics, favouring instead a common British academic network. So the new constitutional settlement faces Scottish higher education institutions with an enforced allegiance to the Scottish nation that will sharply disrupt their 80-year interlude as outposts of the British polity.


2006 ◽  
Vol 36 (4) ◽  
pp. 621-628
Author(s):  
Mary Ann Smart

Giacomo Leopardi was convinced that the willingness of Italians to wallow passively in operatic spectacle was an important reason for Italy's lack of a civil society based on debate and the exchange of opinions. Despite recent proposals that opera and opera going constituted signiªcant means of social engagement and contributed to regional and/or national identity, the preoccupations of early nineteenth-century music journalism suggest that opera existed outside the mainstream of both political and aesthetic debate, and was not yet the subject of a truly vibrant national discourse.


Author(s):  
Daniel Beben

The Ismailis are a minority community of Shiʿi Muslims that first emerged in the 8th century. Iran has hosted one of the largest Ismaili communities since the earliest years of the movement and from 1095 to 1841 it served as the home of the Nizārī Ismaili imams. In 1256 the Ismaili headquarters at the fortress of Alamūt in northern Iran was captured by the Mongols and the Imam Rukn al-Dīn Khūrshāh was arrested and executed, opening a perilous new chapter in the history of the Ismailis in Iran. Generations of observers believed that the Ismailis had perished entirely in the course of the Mongol conquests. Beginning in the 19th century, research on the Ismailis began to slowly reveal the myriad ways in which they survived and even flourished in Iran and elsewhere into the post-Mongol era. However, scholarship on the Iranian Ismailis down to the early 20th century remained almost entirely dependent on non-Ismaili sources that were generally quite hostile toward their subject. The discovery of many previously unknown Ismaili texts beginning in the early 20th century offered prospects for a richer and more complete understanding of the tradition’s historical development. Yet despite this, the Ismaili tradition in the post-Mongol era continues to receive only a fraction of the scholarly attention given to earlier periods, and a number of sources produced by Ismaili communities in this period remain unexplored, offering valuable opportunities for future research.


2018 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 129
Author(s):  
Yudianto Yudianto

This study will answer the question of how far the case of philanthropy action by zending in the Magelang City can be understood as citizenship in the context of the early 20th century? By looking at the relationships between philanthropists and institutional of city council (gemeenteraad) it is expected to clarify their position and function in the early 20th century of colonial cities. In addition to indicating the strengthening of civil society, the case is part of the urban community’s efforts to contribute various forms of participation that are not merely interested in politics or the movement of the nation.


Author(s):  
Marharyta M. Karol

The article examines the stages of the formation of historiography devoted to the problems of confessional conversions in the second half of the 19th century on the territory of the Belarusian provinces. The historiographic trends that formed from the end of the 19th century to the beginning of the 21st century were identified and analysed. The authour studies the peculiarities of Belarusian and foreign historiography at the present stage, when a large number of works on religious issues has appeared, including confessional conversions. It is argued that in Soviet times, the issue of transitions from Catholicism to Orthodoxy was practically not touched upon. In their approaches and assessments, some researchers continue the traditions of pre-revolutionary historiography, but the majority of modern scientists strive to give an objective picture of religious processes on the Belarusian lands, to show them in the context of general state policy. The relevance of the article is due to the coverage of various points of view on the problem of confessional conversions. It is noted that pre-revolutionary researchers, first of all, sought to prove the voluntariness of conversions to Orthodoxy, but during this period, works were also created in which this thesis was questioned.


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