Body Imagination In Science Novels Of Late Qing Dynasty And Early Republic Of China(1902-1919)

As the source of Chinese science fiction,science novels were introduced to China in the late Qing and early Republic of China by a group of cultural pioneers who sought the nation’s prosperity and independence,and then took on the important task of enlightening the people and reshaping their culture.At the same time,the body,to which we are most closely related,was undergoing unprecedented and rapid changes,and the perception of the body helped us to construct a new understanding of ourselves and the world as a whole.This thesis examines the imagination of the body in science novels of the late Qing and early Republic of China and explores the changes in perceptions of the body in response to the impact of foreign cultures from a nuanced perspective.From this perspective,through the exploration of the body imagination in science novels of the late Qing and early Republic of China and related literature,the thesis argues that there are three typical features of the body imagination constructed by intellectuals in the creation of science novels in the late Qing and early Republic of China.Specifically,they are manifested in the following aspects.Firstly,the science novels of the late Qing and early Republic of China imagined physical illnesses,most of which focused on the "heart" and "brain",metaphorically representing the weak,drowsy and sickly physical conditions of the entire population.The scientific novelists of the late Qing and early Republic of China boldly conceived of various healing methods in their novels,"washing the brain" and "curing the heart",and prescribing the right remedy.In this way,this paper will analyse the imagery of physical illness in the novels and appreciate the anxiety of the intellectuals in the late Qing and early Republic of China in the face of the country’s peril and the drowsiness of the people,as well as their efforts for social improvement and national enlightenment.Secondly,this thesis discusses the imagination of the female body in scientific novels of the late Qing and early Republic of China.The function of women’s bodies was expanded in the scientific novels of the late Qing and early Republic of China,as their bodies emerged from the narrow pavilions into a wider public space,and their individual values were recognised.But while the female body was being liberated,it was also being reshaped.On the one hand,in scientific fasponsibilities that men cannot fulfil,and are held in higher esteem than ever before.But on the other hand,the female body in fiction was eventually nationalised and instrumentalised under a variety of regulative forces.Finally,In the late Qing and early Republic of China science novels showed a tendency to treat the body as a machine that could be dismembered and tinkered with at will.The body becomes a ’machine’ that can be edited and transformed,not only for the purpose of renewal,but also to fulfil the wish for immortality and resurrection from the dead.This is an exploration of the scientific concepts behind the imaginary of the machine-like body in the late Qing and early Republic of China.The idea of the body as "man as machine" gradually replaced the traditional medical concept of the body as an interacting whole."Electricity became the means of keeping the body as a" machine " running,while " hypnosis " could change the nature of the " machine ".The" electrical " becomes the means of keeping the body as a " machine " running,while" hypnosis " can change the nature of the " machine.At the same time,the idea of the omnipotence of science and technology led some writers to reflect on science in their science novels of the late Qing and early Republic of China.At the same time,the paper also focuses on the literary effects of the bodily imagination in science fiction in terms of its narrative strategies.The paper analyses the narrative strategies of bodily imagination in ln science novels of the late Qing and early Republic of China in terms of visual graphic narratives,concrete and perceptible details,multiple three-dimensional narrative time and space.