Aesthetic Dilemmas of Adaptation and the Politics of Subjectivity: Animating the Chinese ClassicJourney to the West

Abstract

This article reviews four major Chinese animated adaptations based on the classic Journey to the West. It shows how these adaptations, spanning four historical phases of modern China, encapsulate changes in Chinese national identity. Close readings underpin a developmental narrative about how Chinese animated adaptations of this canonical text strive to negotiate the multimodal expressions of homegrown folklore traditions, technical influences of western animation, and domestic political situations across time. This process has identified aesthetic dilemmas around adaptations that oscillate between national allegory and individual destiny, verisimilitude and the fantastic quest for meaning. In particular, the subjectivisation of Monkey King on the screen, embodying the transition from primitivistic impulse, youthful idealism and mature practicality up to responsible stewardship, presents how an iconic national figure encapsulates the real historical time of China.

The Identity Development of Onscreen Legendary Heroes: A Visual Affect Analysis of Mulan in Three Movie Adaptions

“…Film adaptations have their advantages in reinventing literary classics since many visual elements such as music, sound effect, and moving images could be added to construct a new narrative structure and identity, which is based on interpretation of the original text or its later adapted work. For instance, Monkey King has been reconstructed into a responsible steward in different adapted films with varying contexts, plots, characters, and themes (You, 2019). Mulan has shown up as an iconic figure in front of the global audience in three films, that is, Mulan (1998), Mulan (2009), and Mulan (2020), which are adapted from The Ballad of Mulan , a well-known folksong from Northern Dynasties of China.…”