Japan as the “Other” in Chinese Nationalism: A Comparison of Two Films

• Main Authors: Lin, Yong-Yao, 林永曜
• Other Authors: Li, Jyun-yi
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2018
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/yw668c

碩士 === 國立中正大學 === 戰略暨國際事務研究所 === 106 === In the twentieth century, Japan launched a second Sino-Japanese war, which lasted for eight years (1937-1945). Until the 21st century, the second Sino-Japanese war remains a common genre in the Chinese films, in which Japan always plays the role of invader and hence a negative “Other” vis-a-vis the Chinese “Self.” This thesis conducts a comparative study of two films to investigate how nationalism is deployed and reflected. The first one, “Tai Hang Shan Shang,” is an orthodox Second Sino-Japanese War film that meets the official ideology. In the story, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), while in competition with the Nationalist Party (the Kuomintang, KMT) for political power and legitimacy, nevertheless fought bravely and full-heartedly against Japan, which was portrayed as cruel, mean and ruthless. In the second one, “Devils on the Doorstep,” however, a holistic perspective is abandoned in favour of individuals. As such, the Japanese military officers and soldiers, as well as some Chinese ordinary villagers, all showed various facets or characteristics, which render a simple and clear line between the Chinese Self and the Japanese Other obscure and difficult to maintain. The thesis hence suggests that a clear demarcation between self/other can only be sustained at the national level and is somehow arbitrary. If the nationalist perspective is replaced with one that focuses on persons with various desires, needs, and relationships, the meaning of those binary concepts underpinning the nationalist Self/Other relationship becomes ambiguous and may further prompt us to rethink the meaning and work of nationalism.