Women In The East In The Image

This comparative literature thesis studies female images in the Chinese, Japanese, South Korean and North Korean motion pictures.This thesis consists of four parts: introduction, history of changes, creation characteristics of female images in movie plays, and conclusion.The introduction chapter discusses briefly the subject matters and the methods, aims, and significance of studies.The chapter for the changes of history, a main part of the thesis, summarizes four time periods of creation of movie female images in the four countries. The aim is to compare the natures of female images under different historical backgrounds in these four countries. The major conclusion of the chapter is that motion picture making in the Oriental societies often place a greater significance on the contents, themes, and intentions and those reflecting the changes in social and historical conditions rather than on technological changes. The female image creation appears to reflect the stages of social changes. For example, under the influence of the traditional feudal culture in the first period, the female images were created to be individuals of beauty and obedience. The second period, the female images created in motion pictures often reflect different personal experiences of women after the Second World War. The third period , the new era, the female images in these countries become more commercialized although this may differ across countries. These observations once again explain the changes in female images in mot ion pictures in the contexts of cultural, social and political changes. These also lay solid ground for the analysis in the next chapter.The next chapter is about the creation of female images ' characteristi This is another Important part of the thesis. Based on what have been learned in the previous chapter, this chapter highlights two important characteristics in female image creation in the Oriental motion pictures. One is about the female image selection. The other is related to the criteria of beauty. Over the last few decades, the female images created are those who lived as a victim, loving mothers, female images about war.For the female image selection, it is found that the Oriental motion pictures often emphasize the inner beauty rather than outer beauty and this is consistent with the Oriental view of female beauty.The conclusion of the dissertation summarizes the creation of femal images appeared on the oriental movie screens as a whole.