Bailey's blog

Primary document:
Life Magazine: inside China

http://books.google.com/books?id=MEAEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA22&lpg=PA22&dq=Mao+ping+pong+initiative&source=bl&ots=vCCMOcIKxM&sig=9grF0fWhXTzSAR83YPJC4oCs6r0&hl=en&ei=xPeVTbHtNM2cgQetlJyuCA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=9&ved=0CEwQ6AEwCA

Quote:
“One of the central figures of consumer culture is that through it shoppers differentiated and treated as individuals via so-called commodity self; identities and consumer profiles are melded and desires stimulated and directed by the guiding hand of advertisers…party pedagogical advertising has continued to pursue its goals of presenting a narrative of Chinese history and the primacy of the party in that history, for the purpose of the direction and the containment of the public.”

Question:
My question regarding this reading deals with advertsiign for the mom and pop business. It is obvious that major companies and the Party certainly dominate the advertising scene, but how do local businesses get their name out? are they limited to a sign outside the shop, or can they advertise more broadly? Also how much of this local advertising is regulated/ must be approved by the state?

Comment:
I think this quote presents an interesting perspective of advertising in China. Here we see the rise of a consumer culture, where individual identity is a paramount. However, what must be realized is that though individual wants and needs will be allowed as long as it doesn’t degrade or take away from the party’s overall plan to promote itself.

Quote:”…a peculiar kind of reform-state socialist path…The idea of this brand of late state-socalism is that the state preserves single party rule as its organizing principle and combines the basic institutional frameworks of the state socialist socio-economic and socio-political systems with an economic management model that is very responsive to…internal demand.”

Question:
With all of the right’s fears of the Obama presidency creating a socialist state, are there some either on the left or right, that look to China’s reform-state socialist path and see the value in perusing a path such as this?

Comment:
I feel that CHina has found a unique organizational model that combines the opportunity for strict control over all internal and external affairs, but allows for private foreign capital to come in in certain occasions- allowing the state to remained connected to the world but reserve control.

Also this book is very difficult to understand for someone who has limited a limited economic knowledge. If we could explain some of the basics of the economic principles in lay-man’s terms I think it may be beneficial.

Quote: “With the mobilization of China’s vast reserves of cheap and disciplined labor, it is argued that a “race to the bottom”, has been unleashed producing and endless downward spiral in workers’ power and welfare” “…our counter thesis is that where capital goes, labor-capital conflict shortly follows.”

Question: Is this dilemma something that is limited to China? Or can this be found in other countries with a large labor reserve such as India?

Comment: I feel that rights such as collective bargaining are essential for workers under a state system that China has in place. However I feel the chance of these rights ever being granted or even recognized if ever granted is slim to none.

Quote: “…thi sis a transition, not a rupture or a revolution…The reforms have proceded by trial and error, frequent mod course corrections…policies have not been settled in “one bang” but an on going process.

Question:
Who is controlling the state? if the bodies underneath the state take their cues from those that they are supposed to be looking after then who is really calling the shots? Also how is that state able to realistically control its many officials and avoid unfortunate circumstances such as corruption?

Comment:
I think the quote used speaks to a unique nature of this economic reform. For me at least when I think of change in China I think of quick change, abrupt diversions, and revolution. Instead, this change has been gradual calculated, and painstakingly planned out. to me this seems to be a new but beneficial way about doing business for the Chinese. Or at least what a very general perception.

Quote: “…thi sis a transition, not a rupture or a revolution…The reforms have proceded by trial and error, frequent mod course corrections…policies have not been settled in “one bang” but an on going process.

Question:
Who is controlling the state? if the bodies underneath the state take their cues from those that they are supposed to be looking after then who is really calling the shots? Also how is that state able to realistically control its many officials and avoid unfortunate circumstances such as corruption?

Comment:
I think the quote used speaks to a unique nature of this economic reform. For me at least when I think of change in China I think of quick change, abrupt diversions, and revolution. Instead, this change has been gradual calculated, and painstakingly planned out. to me this seems to be a new but beneficial way about doing business for the Chinese. Or at least what a very general perception.

During the Cold War, Chinese and American relations were strained and certainly limited. However, in 1971, the induction of what became known as Ping Pong Diplomacy, led the way for Present Nixon’s visit to the PRC in 1972, and the turning of a new leaf for Chinese-American relations. For this project, it is my aim to investigate the event/policy known as Ping Pong Diplomacy, and uncover how it effected Chinese-Americans relations and how it fits into the diplomatic strategy known as sports diplomacy. The project will also serve to examine the place of ping-pong in Chinese culture during, and after, the years of 1971 and 1972.

“Regard a ping pong ball as the head of your capitalist enemy. Hit it with your socialist bat, and you have won the point for the fatherland.”

“Despite its seeming disinterest in offering historical testimony, In the Heat of the Sun, provides a concise history of PRC cinema and demonstrates the power of the films to reconfigure the past.”

In the Heat of the Sun brings to the forefront the issue that all historians face. What is the real history? What is the real truth? When researching topics these are the questions we must always asks ourselves. As shown through the movie, the line between reality and imagination can become easily blurred. Thus the speaker/author and their individual background and biases must be taken into consideration. Nowhere is is this more important than when looking at something as widespread and varied as the Cult Rev.

Why is this side of the Cult Rev so rarely shown?

http://ChinesePosters.Net/themes/mao-mangoes.php

The title for this poster is, The great leader Chairman Mao’s treasured gift to the Workers’ Mao Zedong Thought Propaganda Teams of the capital -a mango. I chose this poster beacuse of the titled and also beacuse it looked so differnt from many of the posters presented on the webpage. In this image it is not Mao, or the Red Guard, or the working class that are the center, but rather a simple fruit, the mango. The description on the site says that a mango was given to Mao as a sign of good will from Pakistan.
The image itself is a little hard to analyze though. In the top left there is Mao’s profile facing the corrected direction, always looking over everything that is going on. The mango itself is sitting on a white china plate on what looks to be a red stool and in front of a red curtain. The way the image is set up you get the feeling that the giving of a mango is a big deal, something everyone should take note of, and be proud Chairman Mao is sending you good will.

I would like to know however, if Mangoes have any type of cultural significance today in China?

Quote: “Writing about these posters is no easy matter. They belong to a period that, whatever the interpretation or experience of it, defies the simple characterization and reconciliation through any text, including the poster.”

Question: Posters seemed to have the greatest effect on those living in the cities where they were more present. What was their effect on those living in the countryside? And did the government rely on posters to communicate the same messages for those in the countryside as for those in the cities?

Comment: I think the main thing to consider when investigating a source such as posters is that that there is not necessarily one right answers. By examining this type of visual history it relies on memory history and perception. Every poster has its own unique effect on the viewer, and each view must be respected and analyzed.