Reimaging Heroes and Villains: Contested and Changing Representations of the Republican Historical Figures in Mainland China

Abstract

This thesis examines the diverse and contested representations of Republican historical figures in mainland China. This research project was designed to discuss public history in mainland China, particularly how histories of the Republican era have been represented and generated responses from the public, and shaped national identities. To achieve this goal, this thesis turns to biographical stories, a form of history most relatable to individuals and has proven its power in providing moral lessons to and evoking emotional responses from the public. It is also one of the most inviting and inclusive narrative forms; stories about a historical figure, if told strategically, can create the impression that they are living among us in the present and that public opinions matter to these departed personalities. The case studies selected by this research are among the most well-known historical figures in the Republican era, and their fame or notoriety continues to be remembered in the PRC. The common impression is that stories of these historical figures inevitably classified these protagonists into the binary categories of heroes or villains, when it was assumed that they played a pivotal role in history. However, analyses of the representative historical heroes and villains reveal that even the most conclusive narratives of the most symbolic historical figures embody pluralistic views. This thesis argues that top-down commemoration of the selected historical events, combined with the ongoing hidden discussions and contradictory historical assessments in the public sphere, created a historical consciousness among Chinese people that has gone largely unremarked in the scholarship. Although academic history takes a leading role in changing historiography, the agendas proposed by academic historians does not always translate into the public domain, especially when a historical "villain" is the centre of the narrative. Each of the different case studies in this thesis, from the celebrated national hero, Sun Yat-sen, to the notorious hanjian, Wang Jingwei, reinforces this argument.