Nationalistic Discourse On Strengthening Nation And Ethnicity In Linglong Magazine In 1930s

The dissertation provides a content analysis and text analysis of Linglong,a women's leisure magazine published in 1930s,the period of political tutelage of Nanking Nationalist government.The dissertation sheds light on the discourse of strengthening nation and ethnicity in Linglong in female body,eugenics and cultivation,women's consumption,good wife and mother vs.professional women,women and nation defense,combining with historical background,the suggestion of strengthening nation and ethnicity of people of vision from the late Qing Dynasty,former research result and the content of Linglong.Result shows that the content of Linglong is largely due to the editors,the first individual level of gatekeeper,who were well educated in universities and good at foreign language,which made them acquire foreign knowledge conveniently.The pictures in Linglong were provided by communicators who loved taking photos.The characters of Linglong in different periods vary with different editors.The readers of Linglong included both male and female,and a lot of authors in former period were female,in later were male editors of the magazine.The characters of Linglong in different periods and the discourse of strengthening nation and ethnicity are influenced by nationalistic partriachy,collectivism and editors's individual level.The editors would like to rebuild the nation as intellectuals concerned themselves with affairs of state,although they were different from each other.Linglong bonds the communication function of educating and enlightening women to survival and development of nation,attempting to nationalize Chinese women in disciplining way in special historical background,focusing on body,eugenics,consumption,cultivation of kids,career and national defense.Chinese women are encouraged to engage in athletic activities to become physically strong to give birth to healthy national children,construct and protect nation,and thus to enhance their natural beauty in simple guise by Linglong,as the foundation of transforming nation from weakness to strength.Linglong describes a woman with modest behavior and robust body,as an ideal national woman in consuming large quantity of Chinese and western women's body.In order to strengthen ethnicity in quality rather than quantity,Linglong argues that marriage should not be permitted unless neither of the couple has genetic disease,contraception and abortion should be advocated,and childhood education,especially public eduction and mothermood,should be valued.The nation,society and family should make an alliance for strengthening ethnicity.For China's economic prosperity and development of national industry,Chinese women are expected to consume national products and boycott foreign goods in Linglong,which is regarded as Chinese women's responsibility and patriotic stand.The one buying foreigh goods can not be considered as a true new woman or modern woman,whose behavior is arrested for high treason.Some articles with female signatures,probably written by male,protest the male's opinion that import surplus is resulted by female's cosmetics consumption,but the articles never deny the correctness of consuming national products,which makes a nation strong and prosperity.There are two views in Linglong about female's duty,one is that a woman should be a modern good wife and loving mother,who is in charge of cultivation of national kids,continuation of ethinicity and housework.The other is that Chinese women are encouraged to carry on occupation to be an earner,to make contributions to nation,meanwhile continue to assume their misson on taking care of family.Women are appealed by Linglong to engage in national defence to protect and save nation as a qualified countryman,like what male can do,even sacrifice their lives in face of national crisis.The western examples cited in Linglong indicates the intellectual found ways to strengthen nation from the west,where people,culture and knowledge should be followed by Chinese women,actually disciplining them.First of all,the idea of robustness,as requirement of an ideal national woman's body and foundation of national prosperity,is derived from the west,and the pictures of western women's gesture and exercising published in Linglong are taken as model for Chinese women.Secondly,most of the knowledge of eugenics and contraception is learned from western essential intellectual.The editors are deeply influenced by western culture,promoting small family system prevailing in the west and protesting traditional large family system lack of the state concept.The public education in Soviet Union and the measures taken in western countries to prmote children's education is highly praised by Linglong.Next,Hollywood actresses using indigenous products,and Japanese who live in Brazil marrying their own wives as reasons to persuade Chinese people to use domestic products.In terms of women's career,women's equality in Russia has become the benchmark for the liberation of women in China,which calls for women to be independent earners to actively participate in the work and make contributions to the nation.Finally,from the examples of the active participation of women in western countries in national defense,Chinese women are encouraged to defend the country by Linglong to refute the argument that women can not join the army.However,editors prefer women to conform to Confucian morality,who only worship western material progress.In order to strenghen nation and ethnicity,in the expectation and requirement of women,Linglong is identical with the Nationalist government in robust body,morality,motherhood,women's education,consuming national products,family function and national defense,but collides over contraception,abortion and women going to work or back home.The National Government encouraged more children and opposes abortion,and called upon women to return to their families as good wives and loving mothers.However,Linglong suggests that the implementation of birth control be taken to optimize national quality.Abortion is believed to be caused by deep social and practical reasons.At the same time,women are encouged to go to work to achieve economic independence and be earners in order to achieve the prosperity and strength of the nation-state.When nation is invaded,Linglong provides various guidelines on how women to save nation,emphasizes on their national identity,holds the view that the aim of women emancipation is subordinate to national liberation,all of which make women instrumentalized,for norms disciplined in normal time are loosened.The identity of mother of nation,female nationality and modern women are mixed in the the discipline of women by Linglong,which aims to nationalize women.The discipline is concealed in men's and nationalistic patriarchy,which restrictes women by nationalism instead of the old feudalism.Women could not get rid of constraint of men's and nationalistic patriarchy and instrumentalization on the fight for revival of nationhood.