Shanzhai History and “Historical Nihilism”: A Case Study of the Rewritings of Liu Hulan

• In Event: The People's Republic of Copycat: Shanzhai Culture in Contemporary China

Abstract

In 2013, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China distributed a document entitled “Concerning the Situation in the Ideological Sphere” among CCP members. The document pointed out that “historical nihilism” (lishi xuwu zhuyi), which rejects and rewrites the canonized narrative of communist revolution, is one of the dangers the CCP encounters in its ideological control. Echoing the document, Historical Research published a series of articles fiercely criticizing the widespread trend of historiographical nihilism and called for a war against “shanzhai history,” which it defines as the rewriting of socialist history and the mockery of socialist heroes in cyberspace.
This paper examines the controversy over the parodic artistic works and rewritings of the biography of the iconic female revolutionary Liu Hulan (1932-1947) posted in cyberspace and explores how “shanzhai history” creates an alternative subculture. I first attempt to situate this cultural phenomenon in post-socialist Chinese society, and argue that the trend of mocking the Communist revolution reveals people’s awareness of the deficits of the official version of history. “Historical nihilism” simultaneously reveals people’s awareness of the state’s loss of ideological control and the ideological vacuum at the grassroots. Of ultimate interest is whether this type of “shanzhai history” should be viewed as a site of successful resistance to state ideologies, or should be seen as a safety valve that allows people momentary escape from authoritarian control.

Author

• Xian Wang, University of Oregon