Multilingualism in Taiwan new cinema.

Abstract

Taiwan New Cinema, as one much analyzed film movement in the field of East Asian cinema, has been prominently associated with the national cinema of the nation. However, when it comes to the usage of multiple languages in its films, applying a framework of nationalism in analysis of its films shows its limitations. This thesis sets out to tackle the question of how TNC filmmakers represent multilingualism on screen. In taking into account the colonial history of Taiwan and seeing it as the base context for TNC, linguistic pluralism and switching between languages become kaleidoscopes by which the identities of characters in TNC can be viewed. Thus by jumping out from the conventional nation-state framework, I argue that the multilingual practices of TNC reflect the heterogeneity of Taiwanese people, which contribute to the foreignness as an experience for every individual on this island.
Linguistic code-switching theory is introduced as a main framework of this thesis. Following the introduction, this thesis is divided into four chapters that follow a diachronic sequence. Each chapter focuses on one historical period while addressing the major linguistic groups portrayed in TNC. Through analysis of the audio-visual codes embodied in each group, this thesis also employs concepts from cultural studies in its emphasis on the colonial past of Taiwan as a significant factor in the creation of identities in TNC films. This is especially the case in the ability to examine the portrayal of “self”/ “others” by TNC filmmakers, and how the binary is represented differently depending upon the group identity of the character. With this thesis I aim to illuminate the delicate identity negotiation of individuals in 1980s Taiwan, as seen and heard in TNC, and also in previous decades as represented within the films themselves.

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Identifiers

ORCID for Tim Bergfelder: orcid.org/0000-0001-6585-6123

ORCID for Ruby Cheung: orcid.org/0000-0002-9652-7573

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