Youth Sex Culture Gender politics in Chinese Culture Professor Luo University of Kentucky April 13, 2016

Wei Hui (1973-) Born into a military family with strict parents Studied Chinese literature in Fudan University, Shanghai Published her first short story collection at 21 Shanghai Baby was her first novel, banned in China and upheld as international bestseller outside

Shanghai Baby (2000) “female beauty writer” autobiographical elements literature sex things foreign decadence rebellion market film adaptation

Shanghai Baby, the novel Characters Nikki (Coco), Tian Tian, Madonna, Mark Old Yang, Spider, paternal great grand-mother, Daddy, Mother, Enchantress, Ah Dick, Number 5, Cissy, ex-boyfriend, David Wu

Spaces Green Stalk Café, The Cotton Club, Huaihai Road (Avenue Joffre), The Bund, Peace Hotel, Oriental Pearl TV Tower, Three-bedroom apartment, Fudan University, Youth Centre

Inspirations Henry Miller, Eileen Chang, Milan Kundera, Madonna, Sean Penn

Sample close-reading For Tian Tian, anyone who falls outside the bounds of normality, especially anyone in a mental hospital, is to be admired. In his opinion, crazy people are only considered mad by the rest of the society because their intelligence isn’t understood. He thinks that beauty is only reliable when it’s linked to death or hopelessness, even evil. Like the epileptic Dostoevsky, ear-slicing Van Gogh, impotent Dali, homosexual Allen Ginsberg or the movie starlet Frances Farmer, who was thrown into an asylum and lobotomised in the McCarthy witch hunt. p12-13

Possible close reading paragraphs P12 last paragraph (sample) P13 last paragraph P22 last but one paragraph P25 second paragraph

Marrying Buddha (2005) Wei Hui on Meet the Author

Youth sex culture: transgressions Westernization Migration Prostitution

Shanghai sexual characters: big and small American wives and Shanghai husbands Big moneys and Shanghai girls Playboys and Bold Girls Shanghai Babies and Extraterrestrials (Mian Mian and Wei Hui)

More questions and phenomena to ponder: Is sexuality political in the context of the coming of age of modern China? How do the environment of the city and the larger context of globalization condition a new generation of Chinese women in their pursuit of pleasure, fame, and material and spiritual fulfillment? Marriage Market Takeover (SK-II commercial on “Leftover Women”)

Final project update due Thursday by 10 pm Topic Interviews (from midterm or new ones, if based on midterm) In-class readings (at least 3) External academic sources (at least 3) Annotated bibliography