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| Scatter the Old World, Build a New World, ca. 1967, source: Chineseposters.net |
2. What surprised you most in the "Growing Up with Posters" article? Explain with a quote and your analysis of it.
3. Click "themes" on the Chinese Posters website http://chineseposters.net/, and scroll down to "Campaigns, 1966-1976." Read through all links under this category and pick a poster that left the strongest impression and explain why.
Due Wednesday November 6 by 8 pm. Comments to two other responses due November 6 by 10 pm.
In "The Red Lantern," we see an excellent description of why art forms were popular and effective mediums of social change at the time of the Cutural Revolution. According to Xiandai, “The criterion of a good art form is that it can depict a wide range of themes and personalities through a wide variety of means. It should be able to reflect modern society as well as that of the ancient time; it should be able to depict the lives and deeds of people in various social classes” (Xiandai 167). The Peking opera is a great demonstration of revolutionary ideas embedded into an entertaining form of artistic expression. Revolutionary operas and other reformational art forms were written containing a powerful propaganda message. They communicated commentaries about society during the era in which they were created. A successful work of art communicates social commentaries and calls for reform using characters and plots that people of all social classes can relate to. This, like we see in the forum to the Yenan, promotes unity and gets the entire country on board.
ReplyDeleteThe most surprising quote in the article "Growing Up With Posters" is the fluidity of social constucts that we take for granted as hard fact. According to Xiaomei Chen, “boys were dressed in pink, which was considered a stronger, more decided colour, while girls were dressed in blue, the delicate and dainty hue” (113) in America's founding years. This elegantly demonstrates the fact that gender roles are social constructs; this is a powerful realization for cultural revolution China because it implies that since gender roles are manufactured and put in place by society, they can actively change over the course of time. This quote supports the author's revolutionary representation of herself as a woman as she actively went against society's norms for how a woman is expected to dress, act and look like.
I was most impressed by the poster “Criticize the old world and build a new world with Mao Zedong Thought as a weapon, 1966.” What sticks out for me is that this poster suggests the criticism of the old world. It is not just new ideas which are being promoted, but the old ones are being actively wiped out as well.
"This, like we see in the forum to the Yenan, promotes unity and gets the entire country on board." I agree with this part. Mao's speech in the Yanan forum played an important role during the Cultural Revolution.
Delete"The Peking opera is a great demonstration of revolutionary ideas embedded into an entertaining form of artistic expression. Revolutionary operas and other reformational art forms were written containing a powerful propaganda message." The modern day operas that we recently learned about displayed their political stand point in the dramas. Instead, The Peking Opera displayed propaganda messages in their operas and dramas.
Delete"This, like we see in the forum to the Yenan, promotes unity and gets the entire country on board." I agree with this, too. The new drama themes are more likely as a result of Yan'an Forum on Literature and Art. The new opera at that time is a kind of the cultural army, which is absolutely indispensable for uniting our ranks and defeating the enemy.
DeleteDuring the cultural revolution，although men and women's status gradually equality, but the image of women give some political color.Women are portrayed as neutral in revolutionary model operas.
Delete“The Red Lantern” was a very entertaining play and also had very bold communist propaganda. There was always a strong element of suspense with its hooks deep in your mind, forcing you to continue reading. The red lantern itself is symbolic for the spirit of the communist movement; a shining beacon of better life for the poor and downtrodden. “We've had this lantern for 30 years. For 30 years it has lighted the way for us poor people, for workers.” [Yang, pg. 174] There is also a moment where Hatoyama is torturing Li Yu-Ho in an attempt to garner the communist’s secret code. “Quite mad, these Reds… The Reds are flesh and blood like us, What makes them tougher than steel?” [Yang, pg. 180] This moment reflects the undying, unwavering spirit of the communists; they simply would not give up until the battle was won.
ReplyDeleteI found it amusing in the “Growing Up with Posters” article that Jung Chang imitated a poor man when he plastered his walls with the many faces of Mao and decorated her own walls with his face, yet after it was found out he was just using it as free wallpaper she immediately redacted her initial decision and took them down.
“…Chang, like many other people, started putting Mao’s portraits up on the wall. Her action was prompted by a story she had seen… about a peasant who had hung up 32 posters of Mao… Chang took the posters down, however, when she learned that [the peasant] had been branded a counterrevolutionary, for it turned out that the peasant actually used Mao’s portraits as free wallpaper.” [Xiaomei Chen, pg.102]
She must’ve initially felt very inspired by this man wanting to see Mao’s face all the time, and wanted this level of motivation for herself. After discovering his desire to see Mao was actually non-existent and was just using it for wallpaper, she must’ve been crushed and somewhat embarrassed with herself.
I’m fascinated by the Cultural Revolution Campaigns posters (1966-1876). They’re predominantly red; a wave of red on everything. Mao with his red tide of communism is rushing in to save the day. Comparing this with propaganda of the U.S. a few decades before - “Fight the Red Menace!” – its completely opposite. The first “Red Scare” occurred in the early 1920’s and the second was in the late 40’s - mid 50’s. Communism and “the reds” have generally been considered troubling and terrifying in the U.S; whereas in China they were revolutionaries, saviors of the day.
"She must’ve initially felt very inspired by this man wanting to see Mao’s face all the time, and wanted this level of motivation for herself." It is pretty interesting point. I remember a story that a man who lives pretty far away from Beijing but really desired to see Chairman Mao. So he ride a donkey to Beijing and it took him several months. I guess it could be another evidence for your point.
DeleteIt is interesting to see how one simple act, such as taking down posters of Mao, made everyone think that she was a counterrevolutionary. Then just like that her desire faded out just like that after finding out that seeing Mao was non-existent. I find that to be very unrealistic because if you had looked up to someone for so long and then suddenly you realize that you are never going to see him, it doesn't mean you have to like take everything down and feel embarrassed about the situation.
DeleteI like that you mention the lantern as a symbol of hope with your quote. The contrast of light that the lantern provides against the darkness is emotionally energizing to the audience.
Delete“Quite mad, these Reds… The Reds are flesh and blood like us, What makes them tougher than steel?” [Yang, pg. 180] This moment reflects the undying, unwavering spirit of the communists; they simply would not give up until the battle was won." I agree with this comment. There is a strong undertone of communist patriotism in this opera.
Delete"The red lantern itself is symbolic for the spirit of the communist movement; a shining beacon of better life for the poor and downtrodden. " I agree with your opinion.I think the red lantern is not just a simple lantern, It had became a symbol of revolutionary spirit.
DeleteThe first paper talked about the revolutionary model operas, and gave an example of "The Red Lantern." It is hard to simply come to the conclusion that whether the revolutionary model operas ia good or not. It is another kind of performance, but also got the traditional elements. As referred in the article, "The traditional Peking drama, in the view of the Communists, could only depict the lives and deeds of the old ruling class: emperors, princes, ministers, generals, scholars, and beauties. Workers and peasants, who made up the majority of Chinese society, were either shown as clowns or reduced to a minor position on the old Peking stage. The movement patterns of the Peking theatre were centered around sleeve movements for officials and scholars, delicate pointing and walking techniques for ladies, etc."(Yang, p.167) The new form of arts seems good but the politics which were added into the art is not that good.
ReplyDeleteFor the second paper, the author discussed different kinds of posters and the stories he or she went through. The most surprising poster in the article is Figure. 6.2. "Our literature and art is all for the masses; in the first place it is for the workers, peasants, and soldiers; it has been created for them and is for their use.(Chen, p.108) It showed some of the opinions of Mao in his speech of the Yanan Forum. And the literature aimed for workers, peasants, and soldiers just reflected the first article's evidence, that is, a new form of Peking Opera.
The themes of posters during the Cultural Revolution period gave me a deep impression by the colors. Like the forth one, "Locally produced posters are extremely interesting. Not only because they shed light on the local situation, but also from an artistic point of view. They are often striking in their simplicity of design and coloring, usually done in simple red, white and black, and are somewhat reminiscent of the block prints made in the war years. As such, they bear witness to the urgency of the times."(chineseposters.net) The colors are simple but impressive and powerful, which gave audiences a huge shock. The colors also made the words on the poster outstanding.
I also talked about the colors of the propaganda posters. That is the first thing that stood out to me. The one I chose contained a lot of red for Communism and violence. The color red and other violent colors represented the Communist party. I liked how you called these colors "simple but powerful" in depicting their message.
DeleteWhen I browse the website, I feel the strong view contrast. Red, Green, and Blue were the most important and powerful color at that time
DeleteThese colors "simple but powerful" are like as workers and peasants. They are common people, but they tried their best to get the final win in the end of the fighting.
DeleteI think this also represent that a beautiful future and people will insist to pursue thier happiness.
DeleteI think the colors and their brightness represent the strong future that the country can have as long as they continue to work through adversity without violence.
Delete"The themes of posters during the Cultural Revolution period gave me a deep impression by the colors. Like the forth one, "Locally produced posters are extremely interesting. Not only because they shed light on the local situation, but also from an artistic point of view. They are often striking in their simplicity of design and coloring" I agree with this statement. The posters are very effective at communicating powerful messages because they are simple and eye-catching. The colors are bold enough to attract the eye, but the images are uncomplicated enough that the message comes across easily.
DeleteI agree with that"The colors are simple but impressive and powerful, which gave audiences a huge shock". Not only the word can give us deep impressive but also the colors can give us impressive,too
DeleteI think the color red was emphasized in most posters. It represented the blood that was lost during the wars and the struggle for unity in China.
DeletePeking Opera is one of the Chinese classical cultures. It is a form of traditional Chinese theatre which began in 1958 and was fully developed by 1964. Peking Opera was combined by kinds of Chinese dramatic styles. Peking Opera is more like “spoken drama” while the traditional drama is mainly sung.” (xiandai, 167) The modern Peking Opera changed a lot, such as the actor no longer wear “water sleeves”, thick-soled boots, artificial beards, and symbolic make-up. And they began to put some new elements in there, like the actors began to wear civilian costume and the drab uniform of that time. “Most significant of all, the plays no longer depict ancient heroes in their historical settings but portray contemporary people in their everyday lives.” (xiandai, 167) The modern Peking Opera focus on people’s daily life more at that time, not just mainly play it from historical heroes. “The result was “Peking drama with contemporary themes”: propagandistic, reflecting the heroic deeds of workers, peasants, and soldiers.” (xiandai, 168) Because the communists think that the old theatres are inappropriate to portray the new society.
ReplyDeleteThe Red Lantern told a story about how a railway worker, his mother and his daughter to send secret codes to the guerrilla units bravely. They willing to sacrificed themselves to resist Japanese invaders. “I have seen my father’s courage, my uncle’s willingness to die for it. What are they working for? To save China, save the poor and defeat the Japanese invaders. I know they are right” (The Red Lantern, pp. 174) Even TIEH-MEI was only 17 years old, she also thought that she should resist Japanese invaders like her father. “My father is as dauntless as the pine. The Communist Party fears nothing under the sun, I shall follow it and never, never waver.” (The Red Lantern, pp. 178) Many new Peking Opera were played with contemporary themes like The Red Lantern at that time. These new Peking Operas propagandized and reflected the spirit of workers, peasants and soldiers.
The Red Lantern is a revolution drama. The character of the Chinese are brave. Even the character of the old woman in this play are brave. When her son will go to the "birthday party", she was brave and strong.
DeleteI like your ideas. These new Peking Operas propagandized and reflected the spirit of workers, peasants and soldiers. Most of new Peking Operas described workers and peasants spirits and their performance.
DeleteThe spirit of this opera is inspiring.
DeleteI like your quote "To save China, save the poor and defeat the Japanese invaders. I know they are right". It's specific and convictive.
DeleteGrowing up with Posters was memoir written by Xiaomei Chen about the Chinese Cultural Revolution. Gender roles in society were thought to already be decided. For example, the boys wore blue and the girls wore pink. Chen said the society she was raised in constructed who she was and what society expected of her. She says, “Thus, from an early age, I willingly subjected myself to subalterns sharing “their” dream of building an ideal society in which men and women- rich and poor, educated and uneducated – could, through their collective efforts, share equality in wealth and happiness (page 105).” Inspired by the revolution and her national pride, she explored what the posters meant by anonymously putting them up for her classmates. What I liked most about this memoir was when Chen said “I remember gazing at the healthy, attractive body of Pretty Plum (Deng Xiumei), a female Communist Party worker [... who] lived among, and worked day and night for, peasants she hardly knew. I wanted to grow up and be just like her (page 106).” This was important because she realized she did not have to be woman society had painted her out to be. She found that she could express herself by female masculinity.
ReplyDelete“The Red Lantern” was an opera performed during the Cultural Revolution in China that demonstrates underground Communist activity. When Granny is talking to Li about her parents and how they sacrificed their lives for the revolution she says, “We’ve had this lantern for 30 years. For 30 years it has lighted the way for us poor people, for workers. We have kept it through storm and stress… I tell you, this red lantern is our family treasure (page 174).” This makes me think that revolutionary model operas such as "The Red Lantern" are government propaganda but are mainly for popular entertainment among the people of China. This red lantern symbolized the Communist movement and since it had already been around for many years, this shows that the Communists were strong about their party and they were not going away. This new type of political stand point in the Peking drama was to demonstrate propaganda, reflecting the heroic deeds of workers, peasants, and soldiers.
The poster that left the strongest impression on me was “After the Attack” because it was in preparation for an attack from the United States. This poster is angry and violent with the color red everywhere. One can tell this is a Communist poster.
I also thought the quote on page 105 was very powerful. It just shows how strong the idea of communism has become.
DeleteI liked the quote on page 105 as well, it is a true representation on how the lantern like communism will survive through thick and thin as long as there are people there to support the belief.
DeleteI thought your symbolizing of the red lantern was interesting, it can take on so many different interpretations which I thought was really interesting.
DeleteExcellent quotation choice. Definitely sums up the sentiments of the time nicely.
Delete“ The Red Lantern” are both government propaganda and popular entertainment for the people of China during the culture revolution. The Red Lantern is a stage performance. It was the new style opera drama performance. From the actor’s appearance and the story content, The Red Lantern is government propaganda. For example, “In this play, the old woman is portrayed as a seasoned revolutionary, strongly devoted to the Communist Party”(p 170). Old women in the traditional stage usually are the role of grandmothers. They are reflect traditional women’s characters, which are kindness. However, in this play, during her first appearance she sings: “ Fishermen brave the wind and waves, hunters fear neither tigers nor wolves; The darkest night must end at last in the bright blaze of revolution”(p171). I could see government want to tell people that women have power with Chinese Communist Party.
ReplyDeleteIn the second “Growing the up the posters”, the author illustrates about the Cultural Revolution Campaigns (1966-1976). The ten years was a painful memory for some Chinese. In the article, I am interested in she compared with the life in China and in the US. She mentioned that she cross-dressed as a boy. She wrote, “ One of the most important aspects of cross-dressing is the way it challenges facile binary notions, calling into question the categories of ‘female’ and ‘male’, as in the simplistic rule of pink for girls and blue for boys” (p113). However, look back to the period during Culture Revolution Campaigns, every person wear gray colors, including girls. Does this mean there is gender difference? Woman is the same to the Man?
I have the strong impression of the Cultural Revolution Campaigns. All of pictures mainly have three colors, which are red, green and blue. Red represent Chinese flag, Green represents the solider, and blue represents workers. All of pictures give people very positive feeling. However, the Cultural Revolution Campaigns is a dark history.
You made a very interesting point about the colors on the posters. I did not know that, but now that I do, it makes those posters much more powerful and shows how strong propaganda was used at the time.
DeleteI agree with Ryan. I too enjoyed your mentioning about the significance of the colors for the flag. Very interesting!
DeleteI agree with the above comments about the colors. Colors bring out the emotional response in the viewer. Especially the red brings about images of power and momentum that are not easily forgotten.
DeleteI found the lyrics to the song to be quite interesting, and definitely pro-revolution propaganda. I also found it interesting how the old was blended with the new with the "Old Woman" portrayal, putting even the older generation on board with the change.
DeleteI too noticed the emphasis on colors within the posted, and similarly, described the colors and their respective representation. A picture may say 1000 words, but when you simply change one color it may say 1000 more.
DeleteI agree with your ideas about colors. Color can make a strong image in our mind and it is more power than just have the word.
DeleteIn the opera “The Red Lantern” it described a story of communists spending a lifetime fighting against Japanese invader during Sino Japanese War. Li Yu-bo, Tieb-mei and her granny all fully engaged in defeat Japanese military and never afraid death. It clearly show the spirit of perseverance of people during the War. Also, this opera aimed to remind people that everything can be sacrificed for country and the establishment of China was based on the great leading from Mao Zedong and lot of soldiers’ lives. Under this background, the fanatic personal worship of Mao Zedong was widely spread out and this was understandable. I think Lantern was a symbol of success and future in the opera. “We have had this lantern for 30 years. For 30 years it has lighted the way for us poor people, for workers. We have kept it through storm and stress. Your granddad carried this lantern, and now your dad carries it. It's bound up with all that happened last night and today, which you saw for yourself. I tell you, this red lantern is our family treasure.”(page 174) This was a successful propaganda which encourage people to pursue a good future and never stop.
ReplyDeleteIn the “Growing Up with Poster in the Maoist Era” it described a phenomena of Fanatic personal worship of Mao and increasing amount of posters which eulogized the Red Army and the leading of Mao Zedong. All these have a good effect to encourage people and remind them of the Chinese spirit. Also this was a kind of over enthusiasm. “One of the interesting features…”(page 5)
The Gang of Four leave me a deep impression because death is the first image what I thought. The cross symbol is so aggressive and there are strong anger in this poster.
I like your opinion about the poster and it is interesting.
DeleteI like your comment about the lantern as a symbol of encouragement to never give up on the cause; the "30 years" could be encouragement for those who feel like they have had a bad experience with the revolution to keep going, despite the circumstances and despite the time spent.
DeleteAgree with the "red lantern" was a symbol of hope and better future. Never forget the old times and work hard for the future.
DeleteIn the opera "The Red Lantern," the roll of Communism in China during its cultural revolution. Li, who is the main character of the opera, lost her parents who sacrificed themselves during the revolution and she now has her Granny as her parent figure. Granny tells Li about how they have kept the red lantern as their family treasure for 30 years and it has guided them through hard times. With red being the color of the communist party, I think the red lantern symbolizes communism making its mark on the country, as it has already been around for awhile, and the people should embrace it. This is a type of government propaganda to get the people on board for a new style of government.
ReplyDelete"Growing up with Posters" by Xiaomei Chen was a memoir that really interested me. It tells the story of how children were molded from a young age into thinking the way the government wanted them to think. A great example of this from the memoir can be found on page 105, "From an early age, I willingly subjected myself to subalterns sharing "their" dream of building an ideal society in which men and women- rich and poor, educated and uneducated- could, through their collective efforts, share equality in wealth and happiness." As I have studied communism in other classes, this is very obvious that the communist party was regulating what the children learned so that they believed this from a young age. They were molded into believing that their purpose was to better their country, not themselves. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, just very different from the society we live in.
The poster that I had the biggest effect on me was the one titled "Up to the mountains, down to the villages." The images did strike me very hard, but the description did. Educated children from the cities were sent out to the mountains and villages to spread what they had learned, thus spreading communism. And if just children are going out and explaining this new style of government, the new children they meet in the villages and mountains are likely to believe and agree with the things they've learned.
I didn't even think that the red in "The RED Lantern" would symbolize the communist party, but It's probably the most obvious of any propaganda in the opera.
DeleteI agree with Kyle. I didn't think about that until I read these responses.
DeleteI also see what you mean about the descriptions having a larger effect than the posters themselves.
The red lantern consists of variations on the traditional melodies, and also has the western operatic mode. This drama is focus on the Mao’s intention that is to create a new dramatic form which could be enjoyed by proletarian audiences and which at the same time would best fulfill political functions. (p172. Young) “Granny: poor child, he’s hungry I will be bound. Have we any of that corn flour left? Tieh-mei: Not much. Yes! There is! There’s a little, granny. Shall I take them a bowl? Granny: Yes, do.” (p. 174 Young) This dialogue could represent Mao’s thought. During that time, Mao’s thought was transform capitalist society towards socialism. Socialism teaches people to share things with other people, and all things belong to all common people. Although Tieh-mei’s family was very poor, granny still asked Mei to give food to other poor people.
ReplyDeleteI found an interesting thing in “Growing up with poster”. “Our literature and art is all for the masses; in the first place it is for the workers, peasants, and soldiers; it has been created for them and is for their use.” ( p.108, Chen) In Old China, literature was garniture of rich people; workers and other poor people did not have enough money to get them. Two society were both unfair to people. Literature belongs to all persons wheatear rich or poor. Mao’s thought will lead to extremism mind and extremists; in fact, his thought has had bad effect in the society. Chen said that period was the darkest period in the history. (p.6, Chen)
I like your opion that "Mao's thought will lead to extremism mind and extremists ". The good effect for the lower class of sicety can not be ignored but this will influence some people to have bitterlycynical toward to the rich.
DeleteYou said that The Red Lantern is focus on the Mao's intention, at the same time it would best fulfill political functions. I think its right, the drama was fulfill political functions at that time. It sang the praises of workers, and it completely comfort to the era characteristic.
DeleteI agree with your idea that literature is belong to different degree of people. People should consider the influence of Mao's socialism because sometime is may brings society negative effect.
DeleteI believe the overall setup of the new play was so that the common people could relate to the story, not just this play. I also believe that the quote you provided was good, but I don't agree completely that the play's primary focus was to emphasis socialism. Yes, I do believe the intention was wanting to bond the uprising communist party together, but I believe the main goal was to induce and advocate strong feelings into these communistic people to ultimately be loyal to their party.
DeleteThrough revolutionary model operas, the Chinese government need to carry forward the revolutionary war over time communist party member's glorious tradition and revolutionary spirit.
Deletewell yes, i agree with the quote “Our literature and art is all for the masses; in the first place it is for the workers, peasants, and soldiers; it has been created for them and is for their use.” That was positive information from Mao. its so different from the old times.
DeleteThe opera “The Red Lantern” is not a traditional Peking opera. The accompaniment of Piano in with the aria is the most important part of “The Red Lantern”. Not only have the traditional opera aria as well as the instrument but also add it a new element of Piano which make the opera grand and full of momentum. All these element combined together to show that the spirit that adherence is victory. Family Li fully show this spirit because three members of these family make a huge contribution to defeat enemy even their lives. During the Cultural Revolution, people was inspired of the victory of China and show their great respect to Mao Zedong. I think this is a kind of government propaganda which let everyone knows that Victory is not easy come and encourage people follow the leading of Mao so that they can have a good future. Although there were some personal worship, “The Red Lantern” was so inspiring. “You have tried every torture to break me; Though my body is mangled I clench my teeth, I shall never bow my head.(last page)”
ReplyDeleteThe Grossing Up of Posters with Maoist Era showed the increasing posters at that time and the experience and thought from the author. The paragraph on page 112 leave me a great impression which refer to the different thought in western audience and native audience about the female poster also the real meaning that the author thought.
What impressed me a lot is the poster “ Iron Women, Foxy Ladies”. Each poster in it show that every women in different kind of jobs and they were enthusiastic in their works. From this posters, it represent that the living standard of women was improving.
I like your point about posters for women in the work force. It is really surprising to see how women entering into the ranks of manual labor jobs was slowly becoming more and more acceptable.
DeleteI agree with your idea that adherence is victory. China needs to work hard to chase their goal and especially for woman, who has improve their living standard of life.
DeleteI think that the revolutionary model operas such as “The Red Lantern” are mostly propaganda that happens to entertain the audience that is viewing. This opera performed during the Cultural Revolution clearly shows evidence of the underground Communist activity that is taking place. “We’ve had this lantern for 30 years. For 30 years it has lighted the way for us poor people, for workers. (page 174).” The lantern is clearly something of importance because of the title of the opera. The lantern is a symbol of the ongoing and strengthening movement by the communists. The lantern like the Communists has been around for many years. When communists first came into play they were popular to some and they will forever have a belief that some will buy into and fight for. This opera is very entertaining, and at the same time shows how strong the communist belief in China is. This opera is yet again another example of how the Chinese people will fight for their belief in an ideal and stand strong through adversity.
ReplyDeleteI was quite surprised when reading the “Growing Up with Posters” article when I read “I grew up in a culture where posters remembered, talked back, and also constructed and reconstructed who I was and what was socially expected of me” (Chen, p.105) This really got to me because in America it is common that you are born with a clean slate to do what you want with your life. It is surprising that someone could be born into a culture where they are expected to mold themselves into a certain type of person who is told what to believe while asking no questions. Chen writes that the posters talked to you and almost in my opinion had eyes on you holding you to a standard that was put into place by people that were narrow minded to the development of China.
The link that I looked on the web page for the posters was one that talked about modernization. Many of these posters depict women in power positions having a good time. This is where I believe that China must move in order to progress itself as a thriving nation. All of the people in these posters are seen having a great time, when China can finally transfer to the modern nation that they need to be the country will be prosperious and its people will be happy.
I suppose these propaganda plays such as "The Red Lantern" could be seen as popular entertainment for the Chinese people that were strong advocates of the Communist party. Personally, I strongly dislike propaganda of all kinds, especially ones that lay it on so thick like "The Red Lantern" does. Some examples would be the scene where the daughter boldly thinks to herself "You should lend your father a hand. If his load weighs a thousand pounds, you should carry eight hundred." (Yang, 174) After Li is taken, Tieh-Mei says "My mind is made up now, I see my way clear; To avenge the dead, we'll shed blood." (Yang, 178) During the interrogation, Li calls the traitor Wang a "mangy dog with a broken backbone" (Yang, 179) and Hatoyama laments that "The Reds are flesh and blood like us, what makes them tougher than steel?" (Yang, 180) All these scenes would probably be very entertaining to Communist party supporters as they show heroic deeds and sacrifices made by communist members.
ReplyDeleteThe thing that surprised me the most in "Growing Up with Posters" was that kids were basically told who and what to be and conditioned into thinking that was a good thing. It just goes to show how powerful a tool propaganda can be. Mao Zedong is described almost like a deity, which is interesting since he claimed to be just another one of the people. A good scene that shows this is the one where the family purchases a poster entitled "Chairman Mao traveling through the countryside. Later on we purchased that poster and placed it in a central spot in our house, so that we could often view the amiable father figure Mao surveying the life of the subalterns, caring for them, and perhaps even joining in their physical labor, as suggested by his white shirt and stage-prop straw hat." (Chen, 107) Putting this poster in the center of their home meant that their lives quite literally centered around Mao.
The poster that left the strongest impression on me was the poster that said "The 3 July and 24 July proclamations are Chairman Mao's great strategic plans! Unite with forces that can be united with to strike surely, accurately and relentlessly at the handful of class enemies" The poster has Chairman Mao's head in the center of the sun shining down upon the people all holding up their copies of Mao's little red book To me, this is further evidence that Mao wanted to be portrayed as something greater than human.
The quote that you cited from Hatoyama's dialogue also stood out to me. It seemed like a strange comment for an adversary to make.
DeleteI agree with you that the Communist members would like most of those quotes.
DeletePointing out that Mao was looked to like a deity but said he was just like the common people was a great point. Also the quote you had to go along with it was great support, especially the mention of it being in the center of the house.
DeleteIt is interesting to see how powerful the different kinds of propaganda can be, both the theater and the posters.
DeleteI agree. The posters favored communism and the government. I think these posters were a way for the government to unite the people.
Delete“ The Red Lantern” is performed in contemporary Peking drama style. The drama talks about in Anti-Japanese War, Li received task about transferring code from guerrilla. However, Wang’s defect was discovered and killed by Japanese. Li and her daughter finish their task and guerrilla wipe out the Japanese. So, I support the idea that it shows government propaganda because Granny said “Chinese Communist Party was born to lead the Chinese people's revolution …union it called on all the workers on the line to strike (P177). It indicates government (warlord) announces China was torn. Granny’s speeches strongly express the fact that the popular entertainment is people walk on line to strike.
ReplyDelete“Growing Up With Posters” surprised me that Mao was swimming across the Yangzi River. Xiao comment “Mao did not apply his surplus…physical labor” (P116) impressed me that Mao can focus on affairs of state and brave to face hinder.
“Propaganda Poster” section impressed me when I choose “We will certainly liberate Taiwan,1995” because even though China suffer hard situation, Taiwan always seen as a part of China and people believe Taiwan question can be solved peacefully.
I like how you stated the propaganda of the anti-japanese war and the connection in the play. I also liked the poster that you chose, it also caught my attention since I am from Taiwan and intrigued me.
DeleteThe revolutionary model operas served as both government propaganda and popular entertainment for the people. The operas had to facilitate both in order to effective relate the revolutionary message to fuel emotional and practical support of the movement, “The emergence of the Peking drama with contemporary themes seems to be the last stage of the plan representing the final realization of Mao’s intention: to create a new dramatic form which could be enjoyed by proletarian audiences and which at the same time would best fulfill political functions” The “Red Lantern is very accessible in portraying a Chinese family, and connects heroism with the Mao’s movement.
ReplyDelete“Growing up with Posters in the Maoist Era” confirms the significant effect propaganda had in forming social identities, “I grew up in a culture where posters remembered, talked back, and also constructed and reconstructed who I was and what was socially expected of me” (Chen 105). The weight words carry with an image is surprising, and this contributes to why posters were effective because they interacted with the people: criticizing a tangible situation in which the viewer places themselves and offering a collective ‘solution’.
Published in September of 1966, on the brink of the beginning of the Cultural Revolution, this poster: http://chineseposters.net/gallery/e15-699.php, typifies the propaganda of the Communist party. It depicts a young, passionate man animatedly speaking from the “Little Red Book.” This book, in addition to his belted shirt and red patch identify him as a member of the Red Guard. The Red Guards were at the forefront of the Cultural Revolution, using Mao’s ideology in the “Little Red Book” as their guide. You can see the crowd in the background, waving red flags and clutching the red books to their chest. These hopeful youth are fueled by the theme of a new order in which communism removed any barriers to its full grip on the Chinese. The Chinese characters on the poster read, “Criticize the old world and build a new world with Mao Zedong thought as a weapon.” This poster depicts the Red Guard as seemingly peaceful, carrying no weapons except Mao’s thoughts contained in their book, which they hold close to their hearts. Propaganda like this poster was very effective in mobilizing masses of young people wanting to reject the traditional system for a peaceful liberation. Its message deceptively shouts of a new movement for younger generations, without disclosing reality and the drastic consequences it would have for China and its people.
I found it very interesting that in almost all of the posters, people were holding the little red book. I had to look up what it was, but now I know it's a really powerful symbol of Mao's leadership.
DeleteThe new Peking drama combined some of the traditional elements of Peking opera with modern, Western-style aspects of spoken drama. This new drama was both beneficial to Communist propaganda purposes as well as entertaining for the younger generation, who didn’t appreciate traditional Peking drama. “The emergence of the Peking drama with contemporary themes seems to be the last stage of the plan representing the final realization of Mao’s intention; to create a new dramatic form which could be enjoyed by proletarian audiences and which at the same time would best fulfill political functions.” (Yang, 172) While the theatrical elements of the play, such as contemporary clothing, spoken dialogue, and more natural movements made it appealing to modern audiences, the plays have themes, dialogue, and plot elements that are supportive of Communism. For example, when the antagonist Hatoyama is frustrated by the resilience of his captive, he says, “Judging by my experience, ten thousand men can’t find something which a Communist has hidden.” (Yang, 180)
ReplyDeleteIn Xiaomei Chen’s essay, her description of Gao Yuan’s memoir "Born Red" interested me. Gao Yuan recounts how he and his classmates would scour the posters in order to find messages that went against the current popular political sentiments. “One student even unearthed a sword hanging over Mao’s head in a picture of the leader standing on the rostrum in Tian’anmen Square, although everyone else argued that it was ‘only a painted beam.’” (Chen, 104) It surprised me that students would go to such lengths to try to interpret, or rather misinterpret, the imagery in the poster. “These narratives illustrate the ignorance, confusion, and chaos constituting people’s responses to posters, as well as their use as possible evidence for persecution.” (Chen, 104) The “Monsters and Demons” posters from the 1966-1967 period dealt with a similar theme. These posters are less visually striking and less colorful than some of the others, but the explanation behind them is that these people shown were persecuted for their political beliefs, sometimes because of flimsy evidence.
I think this opera called "The Red Lantern" (as well as several other operas) was solely used to increase popularity of the communist party by the people of China. There is a lot of symbolism within this story but the main one is obviously the lantern. The lantern was a symbol of the common people and the communist party. “We’ve had this lantern for 30 years. For 30 years it has lighted the way for us poor people, for workers. (page 174).” This quote just shows how much of an effort made in trying to gain the support of the common people of China.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was reading the article about posters it really saddened me with what I discovered. While guidance is always useful in mapping out what one wants to be or do…there is a limit to how much. Essentially, (although this word may seem a bit harsh) those how grew up viewing these posters on a daily basis see Mao and the rest of the communist party as elite (which is ironic because this is the complete opposite image they wanted to portray themselves as).
I found the poster with the athlete running alongside a tank (Be indomitable in training, to strengthen the physique of officers and soldiers Wanqiang duanlian, zengqiang guanbing tizhi, liandui jiaoyu guatu zhisi (顽强锻炼, 增强官兵体制)) was very interesting. It was interesting because of how this poster (like several others that were in the gallery) related the military to sports and athletes around the country. In my opinion, they were trying to use something they thought everyone could enjoy or relate to…and then relate that to the military of the communist party.
“The Red Lantern” is a revolutionary model opera, which can be considered as Communist propaganda and popular entertainment for China. It is evident at the beginning of “The Red Lantern” that there was much propaganda in the opera when Li talking about the codes says to Tieh-Mei, “Don’t worry. We’ll think of some way to send it, Tieh-Mei. You’ve seen everything. I can’t keep this from you any longer. Thus us something more important than our own lives. We must keep it a secret even if it costs us our heads.” (Page 173) This shows people who favor the Communist party to be sacrificing their lives and putting themselves in danger to better China and the Communist party. “The Red Lantern” is also popular entertainment at the time for China due to the opera itself and how it was run. The opera was ran in a more western style, which brought a better production value to it. The orchestra, acting, and costumes were all revamped compared to the traditional operas some 20 years ago and brought a greater crowd to these showing.
ReplyDelete“Growing Up with Posters” was very shocking to me. I did not expect that the Cultural Revolution was such a harsh and awful time of history in China. You would think that with the label “Cultural Revolution” that there should be a time of enlightenment or almost a renaissance, but that is not what is described and instead seems to be anarchy and guilt. This is summed up in the quote, “Both posters forecast later attempts to reconstruct positive stories from a national movement that was already failing in the late 1970s, when large-scale strikes and public demonstrations reflected the anger and frustration of millions of educated youth still toiling in the godforsaken countryside. I reacted to these kinds of poster images with a deep sense of guilt.” (Page 106) This shows that posters were trying to express ideas that put down the people of China who only wanted the lives they were promised and either angered, or like the author made people feel guilty for not going along with the governments plans.
The poster on the website that left the strongest impression on me was under the link “Cultural Revolution Campaigns (1966-1967)” and was the second one down. The poster describes to hold high the great red banner of Mao Zedong and smash the counterrevolutionary revisionist line in literature and art. I found this interesting because the poster wasn’t saying to just do away with counterrevolutionaries, but to do away with their art and literature, which means they want to make that way of thinking to become completely extinct.
That poster stood out to me too! However instead of analyzing it alone, I took a different approach and decided to look at them as a group. I really enjoyed reading your stance on that poster, however, and would have to agree with your point of view.
DeleteIn the play “Red Lantern” it can be seen that the play is mainly for propaganda purposes with a slight intention of entertainment. The first main difference in “Red Lantern” that we see as readers is the drastic differences that present itself in the setup of the play. Before the play begins, we see how the style of Peking drama/plays has changed. Instead of being sung, it is instead spoken in the everyday dialect so the common person can understand. It also shifts from main characters that once portrayed Gods, kings, and royalty to that of a play consisting of everyday people. The communist party obviously wanted to “reflect heroic deeds of workers, peasants, and soldiers.” (168)
ReplyDeleteThe reason I believe “Red Lantern” was used mainly for a propaganda purpose instead of entertainment is based on several reasons. First, the play is established in the “everyday” communist person’s life. This allowed the many upcoming communists (the many youth that attended this new stylistic play) to make a direct connection to Li, his daughter, and the grandmother. Also, the play did a magnificent job by drawing on people to come together. The communist party wanted the common people to band together and fight against a certain cause. This can be seen when the grandmother and Tieh-Mei give some corn flour to their neighbors with the crying baby. “Well, with the wall between us we are two families. If we pulled the wall down we’d be one family, wouldn’t we?” (174) What made this even more significant is that the grandmother and Tieh-Mei were not doing “that” well themselves. They knew that they could have saved the flour for themselves, but instead they needed to keep their humanity and help the ones around them. The main reason I believe this was for a propaganda purpose was because of how Li reacted towards Hatoyama at the end. By first calling his old friend Wang a traitor with a broken backbone showed his disgust towards those who sold themselves to the Japanese. But by withstanding the beating and not giving up the secret codes showed his dignity and loyalty towards the communist party. “Even if you have the hills of swords and a forest of knives, you’ll get nothing out of me, Hatoyama.” (180)
In “Growing up with Posters” I thought the main concept was to stress how kids were already drawn into their future. Their parents and the strength of the propaganda around them were influencing their decisions as young adults. An example can be seen on page (109) “I have no doubt that in my unconscious, posters became indelibly inscribed as part of my childhood world of wonders, my wanderings, and the emotions associated with growing pains.”
The poster that left the strongest impression on me was the poster titled “Revolutionary Networking”. By not even reading the excerpt that goes along with the poster, one is able to make a good inference on what the poster is about. From the poster, I took away that the common people (the majority of the communist party), were bound together to fight for a common purpose. This can be seen by the army formation of these people, with the front person holding a picture that looks to be of Mao.
Great post! I agree with you on the main idea of "Growing up with Posters". The children didn't really have a choice when it came to there future, because of their surrounds, parents, and propaganda influenced them so much.
Delete“The Emergence of the Peking drama with contemporary themes seems to be the last stage of the plan representing the final realization of Mao’s intentions: to create a new dramatic form which could be enjoyed by proletarian audiences and which at the same time would best fulfill political functions” (172). It is obvious that one of the main functions of Peking Opera was propaganda for the Communist Party along with being one of the few sources of entertainment since the CP had seemingly brought an end to all things old. on Page 169 of Daniel S.P. Yang's "Peking Drama with Contemporary Themes," he mentions the most popular plays at the time of the Cultural Revolution - Azalea Mountains, Red Lantern, Spark Amid the Reeds, Gate No.6, etc. - and explained that all of them had a tinge of pro-Communist banter. In "Red Lantern," speaking for the cause of the CP, Li says to Tieh-Mei: “This is something more important than our own lives. We must keep it a secret even if it costs us our heads” (173).
ReplyDeleteXiaomei Chen talks in “Growing Up with Posters” about how he had been the “Chosen One” from the countryside – where revolution occurred – and was sent to the University as the “worker/peasant/soldier student” to learn at the expense of his family and town; he then throws in this quote: “At the same time, I was passionately learning the English language and the culture, history and literature of our national enemy in a cozy classroom amid the green sanctuary of Beijing’s Foreign Languages Institute. I felt like the vilest of hypocrites” (106). This new, reformed, industrialized Chinese culture set out to produce competition with the rest of the world, while promoting equality amongst all of its members. Chen had grown up wanting to be that “countryside revolutionist” that the posters spoke of, but he found himself lied to, only being a revolutionist when he was taken out of his comfortable habitat and placed in the city; he found himself being engulfed with the very things he had grown up being told to hate.
The posters that left the strongest impression on me were the “Monsters and Demons (1966-67)” posters, specifically, “One-hundred Clowns.” Quoting the People’s Daily June 1st, 1966 publication "Sweep Away All Monsters and Demons," it amazes me that these people, just because of their difference in opinion, were demonized and left with nowhere to hide because of these posters. At one time we must remember that Mao and the revolutionists were the party with the different opinion and public persecution/humiliation was never a problem for them, which makes me think that they were paranoid for a revolution to happen again.
What is something in your life that you would die for? Your family? Your friends? Your religion? How about your country? In this day and age, millions of humans, no matter their country of origin, lay down their lives while serving their country during war. My point to my original question, is the fact that Chinese, during this time period, were clearly willing to lay down their lives for the advancement of their country, mainly in the aspect of their government and its enhancement. “The Red Lantern” was a methodology used by the people, for the people. It’s essential purpose, in my opinion, was to make communism, or the communist party, seem more appealing to the people. "The Red Lantern" was an opera, and this piece was used in the aspect of something that anyone could view or appreciate. It was made available and easily accessible. The tone of this piece was set early and pretty clear to me, and quote describing this tone that stood out to me was, “Don’t worry. We’ll think of some way to send it, Tieh-Mei. You’ve seen everything. I can’t keep this from you any longer. Thus us something more important than our own lives. We must keep it a secret even if it costs us our heads.” (Page 173) Would I consider the use of opera propaganda? Yes. Was it necessary? Yes.
ReplyDelete“Growing Up with Posters” is a time lapse of different “waves,” or trends that China used as a tool to appeal to their population. It was a summation of the Chinese Cultural Revolution through memoirs. It was a very dark time period for China, yet these stories of how children grew up, with their minds already imprinted with what was “socially acceptable.” The word “wave” was used earlier with a special meaning behind it because these posters usually included an exorbitant amount of the color red, which symbolized the Chinese flag and what stood behind it, as well as new wave coming in: Communism.
Instead of picking out a single poster and analyzing it, I think its more important to analyze these posters as a group and pick out similarities. First, I found that the most important aspect of these posters was the color. Extensive emphasis was placed on something so simple. It was extremely important that the majority of these posters were red. Next, in each of the posters, at least one person (one man) is standing up. This is clearly a symbol for the act of being an outlier of a group, but it is ok to be that lonesome person, because, soon, that person will be joined by an army of persons who feel similarly. Finally, these posters included someone reading, or preaching to a group, as noted above, it is usually the outlier reading from a book or some sort of script and informing his peers. All together, these posters show division, but in my opinion, I see unity. I see unity on both small scales, such as a few soldiers; as well as unity on a large scale, in the aspect of all Chinese persons supporting their home country and the new decisions, its trying to enact.
I really like how rather than just answering the questions posed, you write your response as though it were a mini-essay. I also liked how you looked at the important aspects of lots of the posters rather than just picking one.
DeleteThe revolutionary model operas such as "The Red Lantern", it is a sing during the Anti-Japanese War, the whole nation resisted the invasion bravely. It is a Beijing Opera art film, and also is one of the eight model operas during the Cultural Revolution. In this drama, it mainly describes Li Yu-bo, Tieb-mei, and Tieb-mei’s grandmother three generations of fear no sacrifice the fight against the Japanese aggressors, Reflects the heroic Chinese people to defend national sovereignty and territorial integrity The spirit of perseverance. The special touching scene is Grandma told Tieb-mei they were not a family, “No, child. We don't belong to one family. Your surname is Chen, mine is Li, and your dad's is Chang.” (On page 177) And Tieb-mei was the offspring of the martyrs and they raised her until her became an adult. After Tieb-mei knew the truth, she’s very grateful to grandma. This is beyond the family than the family. And I think "The Red Lantern" are both government propaganda and popular entertainment for the people of China during the Cultural Revolution. Revolutionary predecessors why can do this, is the firm communism the ideal faith. Through revolutionary model operas, the Chinese government need to carry forward the revolutionary war over time communist party member's glorious tradition and revolutionary spirit.
ReplyDeleteIn the "Growing Up with Posters" article, it mainly talk about something changed during the Cultural Revolution. For every Chinese people that the Cultural Revolution have kept enduring memory in their heart. “As an academic interested in gender studies, to point out the unequal power relationship between men and woman among the leadership and the masses in those days.” (On page 114) This aspect attracts me. Each period in China, Women play always is an important role. At the Cultural Revolution, although woman began have the same status with man. But the so-called the equality between men and women is just the gender differences between the sexes, and women into the male discourse expression. So during the Cultural Revolution literature works in the women lost the original features and left the gray images of women. For example, “Furthermore, one of the most important aspects of cross-dressing is the way it challenges facile binary notions.”(On page 113)
I was most impressed by the poster “Study Theory (1975)”. Because at that time, people mainly study the theories of Marx, Engels, Lenin, Stalin and Mao. And earnestly study the theory of the dictatorship of the proletariat. It was important to development the history of China has a great role in promoting.
I really enjoyed your post. You had great ideas and you supported them in great detail.
DeleteI found it very interesting to read about the modernization of Peking Drama after the surge of westernization. How the younger generations were no longer interested in the traditions of the Peking Drama and so they had to find a way to interest the new population. "The result was "Peking drama with contemporary themes": propagandist, reflecting the heroic deeds of workers, peasants and soldiers." (Yang, 168). In the "Red Lantern", the story can be seen as quite propagandist because of how the brave characters represent how the people should be defending their nation, China. Everyone was bravely fighting, even the grandmother. It made people feel nationalism towards their country.
ReplyDeleteIn Growing Up With Posters, the posters were being used as ways of leading the people. “I grew up in a culture where posters remembered, talked back, and also constructed and reconstructed who I was and what was socially expected of me” (Chen, 105). However, they seemed almost too influential on the lives of the people who were living their lives around the posters and their messages, instead of forming their lives the way they wanted too, freely. I think propaganda has always had an influential impact on society, especially when shown in a positive light and is made to seem very appealing. The poster on the website, "To go on a thousand 'li' march to temper a red heart" is very beautiful, and it can be very easy to see how people can be drawn in just by the artwork of the young men marching for Mao. The poster has its own source of power.
I also found it interesting how the posters had such a huge impact on a society's way of thinking.
DeleteI agree with Anne and how huge of an impact they had on society. But I think that in a sense it is very negative because it does sway their thinking.
Delete“ The Red Lantern” is a famous and representative play. It reflects the people's revolutionary enthusiasm in that period of time. This play is absolutely both government propaganda and popular entertainment for the people of China during the culture revolution. For example, in “The Red Lantern”, Granny said “We’ve had this lantern for 30 years. For 30 years it has lighted the way for us poor people, for workers. Your granddad carried this lantern, and now your dad carries it.” “I tell you, this red lantern is our family treasure”. (Yang P 174) The red lantern is not just a simple lantern, It had became a symbol of revolutionary spirit. Each member of this family was willing to die for the sake of revolutionary victory. This kind of spirit was widely publicised by the government during the culture revolution. This play was very popular during the culture revolution not only because of the government’s widely publicised, but also It can resonates with people.
ReplyDeleteIn the "Growing Up with Posters" article, author mentioned poster of Lei Feng that interests me. “The posters of Lei Feng and various picture books depicting his magical transformation from suffering subaltern in the old society to model soldier of socialist China had much to do with planting the seed of national pride in me and molding me into an aspiring young citizen of the young republic”.(P107) At that time, Lei Feng was a national hero and government called all people to follow in the footsteps of Lei Feng. Especially for primary and middle school students.
The poster that gave the strongest impression to me was the poster named “Less births, better births, to develop China vigorously”. Birth Control is a way to control the population. At that time, both late marriages and late childbirth are advocated, in addition to fewer and better births. Some people think this is unfair, but honestly this plan control the population of China and avoid a lot of troubles.
I think that revolutionary model operas did serve as both propaganda and entertainment. Obviously, the people enjoyed them and were entertained by them; the propaganda, however, is not so obvious.
ReplyDelete"LI. Even if you have hills of swords and a
forest of knives, you'll get nothing out of
me, Hatoyama.
The Japanese militarists are wolves
Hiding their savagery under a smile;
You kill our people and invade our land
In the name of "Co-prosperity in East Asia."
The Communists lead the people's revolu-
tion;
We have hundreds of millions of heroes in
the resistance;
For you to rely on renegades
Is like fishing for the moon in the lake. "
This quote from Red Lantern depicts the Japanese in a negative light and the Communists positively. While watching these scenes, the audience cannot help but to side with the good Communists rather than the evil Japanese.
In "Growing Up with Posters", I was most surprised by the differences in perspectives of the Cultural Revolution between generations. The author states: "The imagined world of the Cultural Revolution reconstructed through parental recollections helps up appreciate the surviving and struggling generation's dreams of the future."
The poster that left the strongest impression to me was "The New Socialist Things Are Fine, 1976". I thought this was most impactful due to the fact that it's one of the few posters where all of the subjects seem content. It shows that if you follow what we are saying, you'll be happy and I believe that is what people wanted the most.
The Red Lantern itself stood for the communist movement throughout the entire play. The play was filled with entertainment, suspense, and displayed very well the Peking Drama that was popular during the time. However, the play also possessed much communist propaganda as well. “We have kept it through storm and stress. Your granddad carried this lantern, and now your dad carries it.” (Yang 174) Granny describing how the ‘lantern’ has been basically cared for through the hard times and struggles and still manage to make it, will continue to be passed down. This speaks to me as the movement having been going through a lot of obstacles but yet here it still stands and remains and be passed down for generations on.
ReplyDelete“Growing Up with Posters” was a very fun article to read but I connected most to where she talked about the memories of her mother on page 110-111. “..I have a memory of my mother’s femininity, both as she expressed it onstage when she played the gorgeous Nora in Ibsen’s Doll’s House” It was extremely interesting to read about how she looked up to her mother overall and the description of her mother, from her busy schedule to her feminine body. The poster that stood out to me is “Selling the fruits of a bumper harvest in a friendly manner”. It was the artistic appeal of the colors and image that drew me to it but what it says to me is the working class. How the working class is recognized, her smile showing her acceptance but isn’t a full smile and shows her hard work, also bringing acknowledgement to women during this time.
In my opinion the poster that left the most memorable impression was the poster that discussed "The 3 July and 24 July proclamations are Chairman Mao's great strategic plans! Unite with forces that can be united with to strike surely, accurately and relentlessly at the handful of class enemies" Mao really wanted to be portrayed as something greater than human, and this part shows it because the poster shows the sun shining down with Chairman’s Mao’s head right in the middle, with all the people holding their personal books by Mao.
ReplyDeleteSeparately, The Red Lantern helped to increase the popularity of the communist party of the people of China. The actual Lantern in the story serves as a huge symbolism for the common people in society. There were many other symbols in this story but this one stands out to me the most because I remember the people talking about how the lantern has “lighted the way” for the poor people, the workers. (page 174). This quote shows that the common people of China did gain some type of role within the government, and also that they government did try to gain the support of the common people by “helping them”.
The “Red Lantern” became a popular propaganda for the government and an entertainment for the people in China during the Culture Revolution. This play contains new styles for stage performances. During this play, the role of women is being emphasized. Women at that time period is gaining significance freedom and gaining status in the society for the first time. It may be due to the Western influences that freedom should be granted to everyone. The Cultural Revolution really has changed the society slowly, yet effectively.
ReplyDeleteThe propaganda posters all have a common theme. They promoted the communist government and urged people to unite and work together. Most of the posters either have someone working or a picture of Mao. The color red is being emphasized. Most of the posters have something in red. Red represented the blood that was lost in uniting China. The color reminded people of the consequences of being weak. Foreigners will invade and take over everything. These posters urged people to work hard and do what is best for the society.