Description
Book SynopsisThe late 1970s to the mid-1980s, a period commonly referred to as the post-Mao cultural thaw, was a key transitional phase in the evolution of Chinese science fiction. This period served as a bridge between science-popularization science fiction of the 1950s and 1960s and New Wave Chinese science fiction from the 1990s into the twenty-first century. Chinese Science Fiction during the Post-Mao Cultural Thaw surveys the field of Chinese science fiction and its multimedia practice, analysing and assessing science fiction works by well-known writers such as Ye Yonglie, Zheng Wenguang, Tong Enzheng, and Xiao Jianheng, as well as the often-overlooked techscience fiction writers of the post-Mao thaw.
Exploring the socio-political and cultural dynamics of science-related Chinese literature during this period, Hua Li combines close readings of original Chinese literary texts with literary analysis informed by scholarship on science fiction as a genre, Chinese literary history,
Trade Review
"Chinese Science Fiction during the Post-Mao Cultural Thaw should be commended for its innovative approach to China’s literary and cultural history." -- Yingying Huang, Lafayette College * Modern Chinese Literature and Culture *
"Li provides well-researched historical, comparative literary, and national policy contexts, and she explains tie-ins of fiction, comics, and small- and large-screen media productions." -- J. C. Kinkley, Portland State University * CHOICE *
"This is a solid, rich and inspiring book that complements existing literature in many ways. It is recommended to readers with interests in twentieth-century Chinese literature and popular culture, as well as students of world science fiction." -- Qiong Yang * The China Quarterly *
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments 1. The Field of Chinese Science Fiction, 1976–1983 2. A Study of Zheng Wenguang’s Mars Series 3. A Scientific Holmes in Post-Mao China: Ye Yonglie and His Science Fiction Thrillers 4. Tong Enzheng and the Motif of Alien Invasions 5. Posthuman Conditions in Xiao Jianheng’s Science Fiction Narratives 6. Tech-Science Fiction and the Four Modernizations 7. Fledgling Media Convergence: PRC Science Fiction from Print to Electronic Media 8. Blooming, Contending, and Boundary-Breaking in a Genre of Government-Backed Literature Endnotes Bibliography Chinese Character Glossary Index
