China As World Picture

Catalog description

How does Heidegger's concept 'world picture' become relevant for the epistemological space occupied by a non-Western culture in modern times? This course explores this challenging question by foregrounding the story of modern and contemporary China, in particular China's status as an emblem of the gigantic (in scale, scope, and numbers) on the global scene. Texts to be discussed will include internationally acclaimed films (by Bertolucci, Antonioni, Chen Kaige, Zhang Yimou, Wong Kar-wai, Li Yang, Jia Zhangke, Ann Hui, and others), documentary excerpts, theoretical analyses, historical accounts, and journalistic reports, among other sources.