Date of Award

2014

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelors

Department

Humanities

First Advisor

Zhu, Aijun

Keywords

China, Cultural Identity, Women, Gender, Nationality, Chinese Film

Area of Concentration

Chinese Language and Culture

Abstract

This thesis deals with the negotiation of Chinese cultural identity through film. This work is motivated by a desire to understand more about Chinese culture and media. In the first chapter, relevant research related to Chinese film in general is examined, focusing on the topics of transnationality, nationality, gender and genre. Recent economic development in China has created challenges to traditional values. Forces including globalism, language, consumerism, and nationalism come into play as affluent Chinese navigate new identities. Media representations of the modern Chinese, particularly affluent Chinese women portray the complex experience of identity and serve as a site for constructing that identity. The film Go Lala Go! is a prime example of this and, for that reason, merits analysis. The second chapter focuses on the concept of the negotiation of Chinese cultural identity within the Chinese romantic comedy film Go Lala Go!. The negotiation is structured by globalization, consumerism, and gender. It is argued that the modern Chinese woman is an example of this ongoing cultural negotiation and that the titular character of the film, Lala, is a prime example of the modern Chinese woman.

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