Asia Institute - Theses
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ItemThe cross-cultural representation of the exotic: the Japanese restaurant in contemporary Australia( 2011)This thesis examines the cross-cultural representation of the ‘exotic’ as a new mode of ‘Japaneseness’ emerging through increasing cross-cultural exchanges and interactions since the late twentieth century. Based upon ethnographic data and fieldwork, it demonstrates how the exotic is produced, distributed and consumed via food as a particular cultural product and practice within so-called ‘Japanese restaurant’ in contemporary Australia. This thesis analyses the Japanese restaurant in Melbourne as an ‘exotic genre’, and how Japaneseness (or ethnic identity in general) becomes a necessary formula of the genre. In this research, I explore the changing meanings of what it means to be exotic and what is represented as Japaneseness. The study argues that Japaneseness is reconfigured through contact with other forms, such as ‘whiteness’ and ‘Asianness’, within popular commodity culture. It also suggests that this mode of representation can be distinguished from earlier formations of exoticism that locate a subject monolithically within narrow stereotypes, although the old exoticism has not entirely disappeared in cultural politics. Instead of viewing the Japanese restaurant as a cohesive category, I also conceive of it as a cross-culturally implicated formation that challenges a fixed representation of Japaneseness constructed from a single point of view. My thesis is structured as follows. Chapters 1 and 2 set theoretical foundations for discussions on the cross-cultural representation of the exotic, focusing upon food as a particular cultural product and practice. In the part of this literature review, I demonstrate how food and related practices are marked by power, as well as by pleasure, as they move between spatial/national, temporal and ontological boundaries. Chapters 3, 4, 5 and 6 interrogate this cultural phenomenon, specifically in the context of the production and consumption of Japanese food in Melbourne, through an analysis of my interviews with providers (restaurateurs, chefs, wait staff and wholesalers) and consumers and restaurant observations. The part of this ethnographic study concerns issues regarding cross-cultural desire (Chapters 3 and 4), translation (Chapter 5) and ethnicity (Chapter 6) within exoticism to argue that Japaneseness can become marketable in a cross-cultural context for an exotic image that is both ‘close’ and ‘different’.
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ItemThe controversial moderate: Tariq Ramadan's vision for Muslim political participation in Europe( 2011)Tariq Ramadan has been a significant figure in the debate on the presence of Muslim populations in Europe since the 1990s. His academic writing tackles the themes of integration, belonging and participation of Muslims in the West, and particularly Europe. Ramadan does not advocate for bringing down western secularism, or waging a Jihad against the West, but argues for active Muslim citizenship, claiming that this does not come in contradiction to Islamic values. Tariq Ramadan is a controversial yet ‘moderate’ Muslim voice on the creation of a viable space for European Muslims to participate as full citizens in their society. Ramadan has faced heavy criticism from academics, neo-liberal journalists and the Muslim community, with many claiming that he hides a more seditious form of Islam under a cloak of moderation and tolerance. Political participation is the avenue that Ramadan believes will allow European Muslims to assert their full rights and responsibilities as citizens. There are limitations in Tariq Ramadan’s approach to presenting a viable future for Muslim political participation in Europe. While Ramadan’s views on the significance of Muslim political participation are fundamental to establishing a viable public space for European Muslims, there are inconsistencies in his approach that stymie his efforts to make a substantial contribution. Ramadan’s views have been shaped by both Western and Islamic scholarship, allowing him to occupy an important space in the discussion on political participation. While there is no evidence to suggest Ramadan is a ‘terrorist in disguise’, academic critics provide important insights on the contradictions within Ramadan’s theoretical approaches to ‘Euro-Islam’. Ramadan’s ability to address the various social, political and legal constraints to citizenship for Muslims in Europe is also limited, due to his risk adverse behaviour in tackling controversial Islamic practices.
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ItemCommunication, narrative and risk: expatriate treatment narratives in Kunming, China( 2011)While studying Chinese in Kunming, China, in 2009, I noticed that anecdotes about experiences in the local biomedical health care system generated a lot of discussion amongst expatriates, and formed the basis for some kind of solidarity between them. This thesis takes a closer look at what I had observed informally, to see what these stories reflected about expatriate perceptions of the Chinese health care system, and what these stories suggest about the nature of being an expatriate. Three central themes emerged from interviews with expatriates about their experiences of seeking medical treatment in Kunming – communication, narrative and risk. Unmet expectations about doctor-patient communication in the medical setting were often associated with unsatisfactory episodes of treatment, and were major elements in expatriates’ perceptions of their health care experiences. Expatriate encounters with the healthcare system were often the foundation for stories, or ‘narratives’, and this thesis looks at how these narratives are formed, and the role they play in the expatriate community for the storyteller and the listener in creating a sense of shared identity and experience. Finally this thesis examines the concept of risk, and how interviewees determine what is risky in an unfamiliar environment. Often these perceived risks are different to what they would be in the interviewees’ home countries. These three elements – communication, narrative and risk – are all interwoven into the ‘treatment narratives’ the expatriates in this thesis offer.
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ItemRiding the digital wave: grassroots filmmaking in China from the late 1990s( 2011)This thesis explores the impact of digital video (DV) filmmaking on Chinese cinema and society by investigating the works and practices of four DV-makers who became trendsetters and led the way in the production of three broad types of DV films. I define these three trends as – 1) artistic commercial DV film, 2) experimental DV film, and 3) grassroots DV documentary, as represented by Jia Zhangke, Cui Zi’en and documentary makers Wu Wenguang and Chen Weijun. By examining these three types of DV films, I argue that DV filmmaking has great potential to destabilize official interpretation of social realities. DV films have diversified Chinese cinema by dealing with topics concerning new social realities and issues in contemporary China, and embody a strong force to counter the big investment for big profits trend in Chinese film market. DV technology is paving the way for the advent of a grassroots filmmaking era in postsocialist China. The thesis is divided into six chapters. Chapter One contextualizes trajectories of major scholarship on Chinese cinema, and offers discussions of China’s postsocialism in relation to Chinese cinema and DV filmmaking. I argue that it is crucial to investigate both fiction and documentary films to understand China’s emerging DV culture. Chapter Two examines the inter-relation between new media technology and cinema from both a technical and cultural perspective. This chapter also sketches the development of DV filmmaking in mainland China since it emerged in the late 1990s, and positions this new type of filmmaking in Chinese cinema by indicating the new features associated with DV filmmaking. In Chapter Three, I look at the artistic commercial DV film trend represented by Jia Zhangke. By focusing on the impact of digital technology, the interplay between Party-state, market forces, international film festivals and the filmmaker, I argue that Jia has offered a subtle critique of postsocialist China by incorporating new media technology into his filmmaking. Jia’s case demonstrates that DV films can achieve both commercial and artistic success in an increasingly commercialized film market. Chapter Four explores the implication of DV technology for experimental filmmaking by focusing on queer filmmaker, Cui Zi’en’s aesthetics and filmmaking experience. I argue that DV technology has enabled Cui to produce queer cinema and adopted new film aesthetics to challenge oppression on Chinese LGBT (Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Transsexual) by the heteronormative conventions embodied by state power and a patriarchal social order. Chapter Five discusses the social impact of grassroots DV documentary. I argue that grassroots DV-documenting embodies the expansion of an unofficial discourse on moving images and raises public awareness of marginalized groups in postsocialist China. Chapter Six assesses the overall impact of DV filmmaking on Chinese cinema and society and concludes that DV technology has resulted in a de facto independent sphere for individual that is largely beyond the control of the Chinese state.