Making National Heroes
The Exemplarist Production of Masculinities in Contemporary China
9789888842759
Distributed for Hong Kong University Press
Making National Heroes
The Exemplarist Production of Masculinities in Contemporary China
A study of the relationship between gender and war commemoration in China.
Making National Heroes is an ethnography on the making of national heroes in the commemoration of the Second World War in contemporary China. Foregrounding the lived experience of men and women who participate in commemorative activities, it theorizes how masculinity and nationalism entangle in recollecting war memories. Taking the line of feminist inquiry, this anthropological study aims to capture the significance of creating exemplars that are the realization of hegemonic masculinities. It adds a gendered perspective to studies on the exemplarist moral theory and theorizes exemplary men’s cross-culture significance in defining masculinities. Researchers in the fields of critical masculinity studies, anthropology, feminist methodology, China studies, and war memories will be interested in this book.
Making National Heroes is an ethnography on the making of national heroes in the commemoration of the Second World War in contemporary China. Foregrounding the lived experience of men and women who participate in commemorative activities, it theorizes how masculinity and nationalism entangle in recollecting war memories. Taking the line of feminist inquiry, this anthropological study aims to capture the significance of creating exemplars that are the realization of hegemonic masculinities. It adds a gendered perspective to studies on the exemplarist moral theory and theorizes exemplary men’s cross-culture significance in defining masculinities. Researchers in the fields of critical masculinity studies, anthropology, feminist methodology, China studies, and war memories will be interested in this book.
192 pages | 7 halftones | 6 x 9 | © 2024
Transnational Asian Masculinities
Anthropology: Cultural and Social Anthropology
Table of Contents
List of Figures viii
Preface ix
Acknowledgements xi
Introduction: Searching for the National Hero in the Shadow of Chinese History 1
1. Searching for the Authentic Chinese Martyrs in Myanmar: Necromantic Nationalism and Contesting (Fore)Fatherhood in War Commemoration 19
2. We Will Take You to Taiwan to Look for Your Father: The Masculine Fascination with Reunion across the Taiwan Strait 41
3. Unbearable Glory: Sexual Discipline and Dialogic Mechanism in the Exemplarist Production of Hegemonic Masculinities 63
4. Rescuing Embattled Masculinity and Idealising True Love: Male Bonding between Veterans beyond Political Ideologies in Contemporary China 81
5. Protecting Endangered Masculinity and Guarding the Innocent Warrior: Women Supporting the Exemplarist Production of Masculinities 103
6. Masculinity in the Third Sector: Male Homosociality in #MeToo within China’s NGO Sector 123
7. Conclusion: The Exemplarist Production of Chinese Masculinities 147
Glossary 155
References 159
Index 173
Preface ix
Acknowledgements xi
Introduction: Searching for the National Hero in the Shadow of Chinese History 1
1. Searching for the Authentic Chinese Martyrs in Myanmar: Necromantic Nationalism and Contesting (Fore)Fatherhood in War Commemoration 19
2. We Will Take You to Taiwan to Look for Your Father: The Masculine Fascination with Reunion across the Taiwan Strait 41
3. Unbearable Glory: Sexual Discipline and Dialogic Mechanism in the Exemplarist Production of Hegemonic Masculinities 63
4. Rescuing Embattled Masculinity and Idealising True Love: Male Bonding between Veterans beyond Political Ideologies in Contemporary China 81
5. Protecting Endangered Masculinity and Guarding the Innocent Warrior: Women Supporting the Exemplarist Production of Masculinities 103
6. Masculinity in the Third Sector: Male Homosociality in #MeToo within China’s NGO Sector 123
7. Conclusion: The Exemplarist Production of Chinese Masculinities 147
Glossary 155
References 159
Index 173