Strůjci národního ponížení: zobrazování nepřátel v soudobých čínských kung-fu filmech

Abstract

A pivotal position in the official interpretation of the history of the People’s Republic of China has been the so-called Century of Humiliation. In this official narrative, during the years 1839–1949, the Chinese state was weakened through the influence of exploitative foreign powers and this humiliation ended with victory by the Chinese Communist party over the Guomindang in a civil war. Contemporary Chinese martial arts movies are often situated exactly in this era, when an admirable hero fights against evil and cruel Japanese or European forces. The focus of this article is the depiction of enemies in selected recent martial arts movies, which support the official version of events, and confirm the position of the “Chinese nation” as a victim of the West (including Japan) and highlights the distinction between “us and them”.