La représentation de Taiwan dans les années quatre-vingt : étude de deux adaptations cinématographiques

Abstract

The 1980s were a singular moment in Taiwan’s history, and a turning point in the evolution of
Taiwanese society and in the development of Taiwanese nationalism. The changes that occurred
in Taiwan during this decade are demonstrated by the way in which Taiwan was represented in
literature and cinema during the period. This paper focuses on four such works, two novels, i.e. Youma caizi, by Liao Huiying and Xiafei zhi jia, by Xiao Sa, and films adaptations thereof made by
two Taiwan New Cinema directors, Wan Ren (1984) and Zhang Yi (1985), respectively. All critically
acclaimed and commercially successful, the four works generally take place in Taipei. They cover
a period of thirty years, from the start of the KMT regime in Taiwan to the early 1980s, are rich
in details of everyday lives and tell us a lot about Taiwanese society. The study of these works
allows us to see the formation of a sense of national identity during this time in Taiwan across
different social groups and strata. The works also show that, despite the existence of martial law,
the government granted the artistic and cultural community a certain amount of latitude to engage
in discussions about these issues.