Brushes with power : modern politics and the Chinese art of calligraphy / Richard Curt Kraus.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Kraus, Richard Curt.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Calligraphy, Chinese--Political aspects.

Calligraphy, Chinese.

China--Cultural policy.

China.

Cultural policy.

Physical Description:

xii, 208 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

Berkeley : University of California Press, [1991]

Summary:

"In Kraus's hands, the study of calligraphy becomes a metaphor for a much wider topic--the persistence of traditionalism in modern China. That traditionalism is obvious to anyone who has even a superficial knowledge of modern China; but it is vague and so diffuse that it is difficult to gain a satisfying intellectual comprehension of it. By focusing on a small aspect of that traditionalism--but an aspect with deep metaphoorical resonance--the author helps us to gain a more focused understanding of Chinese cultural life."--Richard Madsen, author of "Morality and Power in a Chinese Village

Contents:

Part I The Institution of Calligraphy in Imperial China 1

1. Chinese Calligraphy as a System of Power 3

2. Demystifying Chinese Characters 15

3. The Legend of the Calligraphy Sage, Wang Xizhi 26

4. The Brush as an Instrument of Rule 36

5. Art Criticism as Political Commentary 45

Part II Calligraphy and Revolution 53

6. The Cultural Dilemma of the Revolutionary Elite 55

7. The Gentlemen Scholars of the Central and South Lakes 65

8. The Failed Assault on Chinese Characters 75

9. Leninist Calligraphy for Mass Politics 83

10. Cultural Revolution Calligraphy: Big Characters and Leftist Lines 96

11. Evil Characters, Poison Pens 109

12. The Unsuccessful Penmanship of Chairman Hua Guofeng 123

Part III Postrevolutionary Calligraphy 139

13. Calligraphy's New Conventions 141

14. A Personal Art in a Changing Society 151

15. The Orchid Pavilion's Modern Legacy 159.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 173-197) and index.

ISBN:

0520072855

OCLC:

22731326