Assignment 2
Answer these questions by reading these two articles. It is important to use the readings to answer these questions.
1. Compare and contrast Lu Xun’s and Ding Ling’s ideas regarding women’s liberation in their essays? How do they think similarly yet also different about the “New Woman†at this time in China? How do they each present their views in the essay, and what rhetorical strategies and metaphors do they use to convey their ideas? How are they similar and/or different?
2. How do we see themes of liberation and transformation in the story “New Faith� How and why does this story go beyond issues pertaining to women’s victimization and in fact have national significance? In what ways is this story a form of propaganda and therefore connected to ideological concerns?
3. Trace the metaphor or rape in Ding Ling’s story “New Faith.†What are the power and effect of the old woman and her story? How does this story raise questions of meaning and power, as well as women’s self-representation and the act of storytelling?
4. What are the key themes, problems and concerns in the film New Women? How are these presented? What, do you,, was the cultural and ideological significance of this film in mid-1930’s China?