Not Your Father's Confucius

Check out this article by Chris Livaccari on the new artistic interpretation on Confucius' image in contemporary China. Source: http://asiasociety.org/blog/asia/not-your-fathers-confucius

Confucius Lottery Tickets!

Here's the China Daily report on the 'ire' created by the lottery ticket with Confucius' images on it in Qufu. I just like this kind of story because it really challenges the academics who did our research but only able to capture the social condition at a certain moment but unable to catch up as fast as how the symbol transform its meaning (or the fact that there are multiple and even contradicting meanings that are circulating around).

I also like to read those logic-confusing statement that made by the 'authority' of lottery ticket, saying that "The Confucius-themed lotteries are the country's most real culture-centered tickets'. So can Confucius' image help the sales of lottery ticket? seems not, according to the China Daily report. Bummer.

A salesman at a welfare lottery outlet in Liaocheng, Shandong province, holds lottery tickets that use the image and sermons of Confucius. [China Daily]

An interesting point to me is : who really has the claim to capitalize the cultural capital of Confucius (and his image) -- and the Shandong province sees itself as the 'legitimate' player in this discourse because it was the birthplace of Confucius, and his image represents the 'region characteristics'. Sebastien Billioud and Joel Thoraval's recent article published in China Perspective discusses in details the whole 'enterprise' of the ceremonies for worshiping Confucius and the 'cultural festival' associate with it that take place in Qufu, Shandong annually. They suggests that it reflects 'two characteristics of Chinese socieity: its ideological background and the increasing merchandising of culture. The ideological agenda intertwines here with the economic needs of local authorities, for which cultural heritage and tourism revenue constitute important trup cards for local development' (Billioud & Thoraval 2009).

The Shandong government can capitalize the image of Confucius through their annual 'festivals' from tourism and 'trade show' surrounding the theme of Confucianism (No wonder Confucius need the copyright law to protect his image), but what and where the line should be anyway? While Confucius' name and image can be associated with stationaries, books, coins, or even wine, somehow his face appears on lottery ticket 'cross the line'.The dilemma, as I see it, is that while reconstructing the sacred image of Confucius is crucial in the process of 'opportunity maximization' (or, capitalization), the process in itself undermines the moral authenticity of the sacredness.

As the talk about the revival of Confucianism is becoming a 'hot topic' these days and the analysis about how the Chinese state is 'using' Confucianism to fulfill whatever 'vacuum' that they are facing, one question that we should have in mind is that how can the state capitalize on the cultural capital of Confucianism when its moral authenticity is in question?

Billioud, S. and Thoraval, J.. 2009. 'Lijiao: The Return of Ceremonies Honouring Confucius in Mainland China'. China Perspectives , 2009/4:82-100.

Avatar is supressed so that Confucius will success

My favorite movie of the year just won the best picture from the Golden Globe (although I also think that will deserve that too). Yet, reported from Apple Daily, a newspaper from Hong Kong, the Chinese government limited the showing of this world-wide success movie to only the 3D-version (since there are limited number of cinema equipped with the facilities for showing 3D movie). The movie is a big box-office success, and had a record-making ticket-sales for 5 billion RMB in 2 weeks. The Propaganda Department requests that media should focus their report on the movie <> instead, since it's identified as the 'main melody' by the higher ranking central government officials. The article argues that there are two possible reasonse for the Chinese government to do so: 1) since it's so popular, it is over-taking the movie market from the locally-produced movie; 2) the storyline may remind audiences about forced demolition and relocation, and it encourages violent resisteance.

'main melody', according to Baidu.com, means something more than just theme or motives but also refers to 'film, television shows and other products of art that is accord with the benefit of the ruling class. Promotion of these products is usually lead by the ruling class'. The movie became part of the 'main melody' identified by the Propaganda Department in March 2009, when Hu Jintao said that 'it's about time to release a movie about Confucius'. It is described as 'a great film with singificant political, cultural, and historical meaning', and the icon to promote Chinese Confucian culture around the world.

Is becoming the tool for communist China's propaganda? This question remind me the article by Peter Foster at the Telegraph (see here) when he discusses the concept of 'propaganda' in China context. It seems to me that, according to Foster, the key difference between propaganda versus a government promotion of certain policy/ideas is depending on whether one have the right to refuse/challenge. While people in China may have the right to choose to see or not to see the movie (or simply, cannot afford to see the movie), it seems that the modern way of propagate certain idea is to limited choices.

Source: Apple Daily

Accesses date: 16 January 2010

北京捧《孔子》驅趕《阿凡達》
恐劇情惹強拆遷聯想　強勁票房危及國產片

2010年01月18日

全球熱播的荷李活巨片《阿凡達》（ Avatar）在內地遭截擊。中國電影發行放映公司（中影公司）指示各地停映《阿凡達》普通版，僅放映立體版；而中共中央宣傳部（中宣部）則下令媒體不准再炒作《阿凡達》熱。據悉，當局截擊《阿凡達》有兩大原因，一是該片吸金過度，搶了國產片市場；二是影片引起觀眾對強迫拆遷聯想，並有煽動暴力抗爭之嫌。

內地接近中影公司人士昨對本報證實，中影公司近日向各地發出指示，要求在本周初撤下《阿凡達》 2D和膠片版（即普通版），僅保留 3D版繼續上映。

《孔子》將於本月 22日在內地各地同步上映。

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《孔子》成為中共力推的主旋律影片。

抽起 2D僅保留 3D版

因內地 3D影院不多，該指令實際是限制《阿凡達》在更大範圍繼續傳播。該人士稱，有關決定來自國家廣電總局，「可能是帶有政治性的決定。」據悉，即使是 3D版可能也只能放映三至四周。《阿凡達》是在本月四日開始在內地上映。
消息透露，中宣部近日也發出指示，要求各地宣傳主管部門管好媒體，不要再炒作《阿凡達》掀起的熱潮，並正確引導相關輿論。中宣部同時要求，媒體娛樂新聞報道重點，應轉到即將在全國上映的國產巨片《孔子》。由香港明星周潤發主演的《孔子》將於本月 22日（周五）在內地各地同步上映。
北京影評人劉毅認為，中影公司和中宣部同時出手截擊《阿凡達》，原因之一是該片在內地上映短短半個月，票房已近五億元人民幣，打破內地影片吸金紀錄；當局要扶持國產片，不想讓一部進口電影佔據太大市場份額；另外，《孔子》是獲中共高層力捧、被定為「主旋律」的獻禮影片，當局不想讓它被一部外國進口片搶去風頭。

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《阿凡達》被指有煽動觀眾「以暴抗暴」之嫌。

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《阿凡達》票房強勁，已收近五億元人民幣，打破內地影片吸金紀錄。

被指煽動「以暴抗暴」

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《阿凡達》勾起民眾被逼遷之痛。圖為上海一群被強拆的業主誓言維權。

還有消息指，中宣部下令輿論冷待《阿凡達》還有一個重要原因，就是該片挑起觀眾對強迫拆遷的聯想，甚至有煽動觀眾仿效片中情節對逼遷「以暴抗暴」之嫌。隨着影片熱播，內地互聯網出現不少相關議論，有網民直指影片「講的就是發展商和政府以開發為名，強迫搬遷的故事」，「要向納美人（片中反抗外來者強拆的外星人）學習」！
內地近年因強迫拆遷釀發悲劇不斷，居民不時以自焚或自殘等方式抗議。有網民指，《阿凡達》導演一定在中國住過，受中國社會強拆逼遷事件啟發，才想出這個故事，「唯一差別是，電影結局是有希望的，而中國被強拆的民眾只有絕望」。網民又說：「《阿凡達》是紀念釘子戶抵抗強迫拆遷的成功輓歌。」

中共力撐　圖以儒治國

2010年01月18日

北京截擊《阿凡達》原因之一，是本周將上映的國產影片《孔子》，當局一方面要扶持國產片，另一方面因《孔子》是中共總書記、國家主席胡錦濤力撐的「主旋律」影片。中共期望以孔子的儒家思想灌輸民眾，維持統治。

內地媒體披露，去年 3月全國人大會議期間，胡錦濤在江蘇團遇到全國人大代表、電影女導演胡玫。胡錦濤問：「你在做甚麼？」胡玫答：「我在拍《孔子》。」胡錦濤聞訊大悅：「哎呀，那可是一個重大的……」停頓數秒後胡錦濤說：「現在推出《孔子》，正是時候！」
正是因胡錦濤這句話，正在籌拍的《孔子》就被中宣部納入「主旋律」作品之列，譽之為中國首部「具重大政治、文化、歷史意義的巨片」，決定作為中國儒家文化思想代表在全球推廣。據悉該片製作拷貝多達 2,500個，超過建政 60周年獻禮片《建國大業》（ 1,450個），更創下內地電影拷貝紀錄。
內地文化人昝愛宗指，馬列意識形態今天在中國難獲認同，中共處心積慮搬出孔子，欲以儒治國，因儒家的「忠、孝、君、臣」等觀念，十分適合中共在社會動盪之際維持統治的心態。他表示，胡錦濤對電影《孔子》的熱情及中共在全世界推廣孔子學院的做法，都是證明，「孔子與馬列格格不入，馬列哲學已徹底破產，共產黨救不了自己，要孔子救共產黨，恐怕也是毫無出路。假如孔子在世，一定討厭自己被政客所利用。」