In the 1950s, a French journalist joked that the Chinese were ‘blue ants under the red flag, ‘ dressing identically and even moving in concert like robots. When the Cultural Revolution officially began, this uniformity seemed to extend to the mind. From the outside, China had become a monotonous world, a place of endless repetition and imitation, but a closer look reveals a range of cultural experiences, which also provided individuals with an obscure sense of freedom.
In
The Art of Cloning, Pang Laikwan examines this period in Chinese history when ordinary citizens read widely, traveled extensively through the country, and engaged in a range of cultural and artistic activities. The freedom they experienced, argues Pang, differs from the freedom, under Western capitalism, to express individuality through a range of consumer products. But it was far from boring and was possessed of its own kind of diversity.
In
The Art of Cloning, Pang Laikwan examines this period in Chinese history when ordinary citizens read widely, traveled extensively through the country, and engaged in a range of cultural and artistic activities. The freedom they experienced, argues Pang, differs from the freedom, under Western capitalism, to express individuality through a range of consumer products. But it was far from boring and was possessed of its own kind of diversity.
About the author
PANG LAIKWAN is a Professor of Cultural Studies at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, and author of Creativity and Its Discontents.
Language English ● Format EPUB ● Pages 320 ● ISBN 9781784785215 ● File size 3.3 MB ● Publisher Verso UK ● City London ● Country GB ● Published 2017 ● Downloadable 24 months ● Currency EUR ● ID 5060664 ● Copy protection Adobe DRM
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