The Nanjing Massacre and the Making of Mediated Trauma
Drawing on cultural trauma theory, this book investigates how collective memory of the Nanjing Massacre is fashioned in China and how the mass media, political power, and public praxis jointly shape the politics and culture of memory in contemporary China.
Allowing for the dimensions of history and different mediating spaces, the authors first conduct textual analysis of news reports from traditional media since the event took place, revealing that the significance of the Massacre was initially portrayed as a local incident before its construction as a national trauma and finally a collective memory. In a study of physical and online memorial spaces, including the Memorial Hall, commemorative activities on the Internet, and new media platforms, the book unveils the production and reproduction of trauma narratives as well as how these narratives have been challenged. The final part further studies the interactions between media and other institutional settings while exploring issues of global memory and reconciliation in East Asia.
The title will be an essential read for anyone interested in memory studies, media and communication, and particularly the collective memory of the Nanjing Massacre.
Hongtao Li is a professor of media studies at Zhejiang University, China. His research interests include media sociology, cultural memory, and global communication.
Shunming Huang is a professor of journalism at Sichuan University, China. His research interests include media sociology, cultural memory, etc.
China Perspectives
The China Perspectives series focuses on translating and publishing works by leading Chinese scholars, writing about both global topics and China-related themes. It covers Humanities and Social Sciences, Education, Media and Psychology, as well as many interdisciplinary themes.
This is the first time any of these books have been published in English for international readers. The series aims to put forward a Chinese perspective, give insights into cutting-edge academic thinking in China, and inspire researchers globally.
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Titles in media communication currently include:
Immersive Communication
The communication paradigm of the third media age
Li Qin
Communicative Cities and Urban Space
Scott McQuire and Sun Wei
Communication and Community in the New Media Age
Wang Bin
Cultural Expression and Subjectivity of Chinese Peasants
Sha Yao
The Nanjing Massacre and the Making of Mediated Trauma
Hongtao Li and Shunming Huang
Environmental Risk Communication
Actors, Issues and Governance
Jia Dai and Fanxu Zeng
For more information, please visit https://www.routledge.com/China-Perspectives/book-series/CPH
The Nanjing Massacre and the Making of Mediated Trauma
Hongtao Li and Shunming Huang
Translated by Xinyue Chang and Edwin A. Schmitt
The publication of this book is supported by the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities.
First published in English 2022
by Routledge
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and by Routledge
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2022 Hongtao Li, Shunming Huang
Translated by Xinyue Chang and Edwin A. Schmitt
The right of Hongtao Li and Shunming Huang to be identified as authors of this work has been asserted by them in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers.
Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe.
Published in Chinese by China Renmin University Press 2017
English Version by permission of China Renmin University Press.
British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Li, Hongtao, 1980- author. | Huang, Shunming, 1973- author. | Chang, Xinyue, translator. | Schmitt, Edwin, translator.
Title: The Nanjing Massacre and the making of mediated trauma / Hongtao Li, Shunming Huang ; translated by Xinyue Chang and Edwin A. Schmitt. Other titles: Ji yi de wen li. English
Description: Abingdon, Oxon ; New York : Routledge, 2022. | Series: China perspectives | "Published in Chinese by China Renmin University Press 2017; English Version by permission of China Renmin University Press." | Includes bibliographical references and index. |
Identifiers: LCCN 2021008381 (print) | LCCN 2021008382 (ebook) | ISBN 9781032048437 (hardback) | ISBN 9781032058221 (paperback) | ISBN 9781003199366 (ebook)
Subjects: LCSH: Nanking Massacre, Nanjing, Jiangsu Sheng, China, 1937. | Sino-Japanese War, 1937-1945--Atrocities. | Nanking Massacre, Nanjing, Jiangsu Sheng, China, 1937--Social aspects--China. | Nanking Massacre, Nanjing, Jiangsu Sheng, China, 1937--Historiography. | Nanjing (Jiangsu Sheng, China)--History--20th century.
Classification: LCC DS797.56.N365 L52413 2022 (print) | LCC DS797.56.N365 (ebook) | DDC 951.04/2--dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2021008381
LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2021008382
ISBN: 978-1-032-04843-7 (hbk)
ISBN: 978-1-032-05822-1 (pbk)
ISBN: 978-1-003-19936-6 (ebk)
Typeset in Times New Roman
by MPS Limited, Dehradun
Contents
List of figures
List of tables
Foreword
Preface
Translators Preface
List of Abbreviations
Introduction: towards an enduring commemoration
From atrocities to massacre
The narrative about humiliation and the construction of trauma
Marking the site of memory with numbers
The making of the online memorial space
The collaboration and contestation over cyber memories
Conclusion
Afterword
Bibliography
Index
2.1 Layout design for the column Record of the Enemy's Ten Thousand Evil Deeds
2.2 The first page of Five Months in Fallen Nanjing printed in Mincheng Y Kungy, a thrice-monthly journal from Fujian province
2.3 Cover of the Chinese translation of What War Means: The Japanese Terror in China: A Documentary Record
2.4 Memorandum of Atrocities by the Japanese Army (The book cover and the report)
3.1 The annual distribution of the articles commemorating the Nanjing Massacre published in the Peoples Daily (19492012)
4.1 The Peace Ark
4.2 The spatial pattern and visiting route of the Memorial Hall
4.3 The stone wall with the number of victims written on it
