Chu, "Sixth Generation films and national allegory," 2005

Katherine Kit Ling Chu, M.A.

Abstract (Summary)
The paper first tries to introduce the different definitions of the Sixth Generation and provide a general socio-political background of China. Second, by using the model developed by Jameson, the national allegory framework tries to examine the Sixth Generation films from three perspectives. Firstly, how the Sixth Generation films broke through the limits and maintained their own creativity under the institutions. Secondly, how the Sixth Generation people address them and survived in the face of commercialization. Finally, a comparison is drawn between the films of the Fifth Generation and the Sixth Generation to demonstrate how they were made to be the Chinese national allegory. The last part of the paper is devoted to an examination of the current cultural and social environments of the Chinese mainland; taking Xiao Wu and Blind Shaft as examples, this paper tries to discuss the possible national allegories the Sixth Generation films might present.

Advisor: Rosen, Stanley