In the 1990s, China’s economic reform campaign reached a new high. Amid the eager adoption of capitalism, however, the spectre of revolution re-emerged. Red Classics, a historic-revolutionary themed genre created in the high socialist era were widely taken up again in television drama adaptations. They have since remained a permanent feature of TV repertoire well into the 2010s. Remaking Red Classics in Post-Mao China looks at the how the revolutionary experience is represented and consumed in the reform era. It examines the adaptation of Red Classics as a result of the dynamic interplay between television stations, media censorship and social sentiment of the populace. How the story of revolution was reinvented to appeal and entertain a new generation provides important clues to the understanding of transformation of class, gender, locality and faith in contemporary China.
Qian Gong is a Senior Lecturer at Curtin University and convenor of the Chinese major program, as well as publishing regularly on Chinese media and popular culture. She was a journalist for China’s national newspaper China Daily before she joined academia.
AcknowledgementsIntroduction: Revolution and TV Drama: The Uneasy Bedfellows in the Reform EraChapter 1: TV Dramas as Market Commodities, Cultural Artifacts and Social PracticesChapter 2: Hybridising the Red Classics in Post-Mao China: The Production and Consumption ContextChapter 3: From Chief to Chef: Remoulding HeroesChapter 4: Getting the Right Mix: Revolutionary Women and Contemporary FemininityChapter 5: Living Red: Production, Consumption and Local Memory of Revolutionary Culture in LinyiChapter 6 The Question of Faith in TV Drama SeriesConclusionFilmographyBibliography
Stories of the Chinese revolution are deeply ingrained in the collective memories of the Chinese nation, and TV drama has turned out to be the most effective and affective cultural form in retelling these stories. This engaging and nuanced book offers a fascinating window on this highly dynamic and very intriguing facet of contemporary Chinese cultural politics.