The symbolic of female body in the anti-Japanese war painting in China
List of Authors
  • Issarezal Ismail , Li Jianan1

Keyword
  • Symbol; Female Body; Chinese Anti-Japanese War

Abstract
  • From 1931 to 1945, Japan launched a 14-year war of aggression against China and it had a profound impact on China’s politics, economy, and culture. One of the reactions or responses from Chinese society to this tragic event is through art, especially in painting. However, most of the paintings in the Anti-Japanese War are dominated by male subjects and females only appear as a supporting role in the composition. The objectives of this study are to describe the female body through Chinese Anti-Japanese War paintings from the 1970’s and to interpret the meaning of signs and symbols through a conceptual framework that has been built from relevant concepts. This study adopts a qualitative research strategy that makes use of observation and documents as its main research methods. This study shows that these visual artworks reflected the social transformation and changing gender roles in culture at that time. The female body in these visual works conveys multiple meanings such as bravery, tenacity, and sacrifice.

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