Described in the Chinese Communist Party’s orthodox historiography as a dark and repressive period and part of the 'century of humiliation', the Republican era (1912-1949) has in recent decades undergone a significant reassessment in the People’s Republic of China. In books, newspaper articles, documentaries and dramas, Republican China has sometimes been portrayed nostalgically as a vibrant society making remarkable progress in modernisation in the face of severe external challenges.
This study explores the origins of the surprising phenomenon known as 'Republican fever' and examines in detail how Republican-era legacies have been reassessed in the reform era. It finds that, while the post-Mao regime continues to use the negative view of China’s pre-communist history to maintain its historical legitimacy, it has also been promoting a positive view of aspects of the same period in order to support its post-1978 priorities of modernisation and nationalism, a trend that has persisted under Xi Jinping despite his tightened ideological control.
The selective revival of Republican legacies, though conducive to the Party’s current political objectives, has given rise to revisionist narratives that damage the hegemony of its orthodox historical discourses.
Qiang Zhang
University of NottinghamUniversity Park Nottingham, NG7 2RD
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