EALC123 - Love in China

We all know that love is not easy. But what makes it so complicated? This course examines how the notion of "love" in Chinese culture offers a key for us to understand Chinese emotions, family structure, gender and sexuality, consumer economy, as well as the formation of political identity. Is "love" always defined in light of romantic or intimate relationships? Where can we posit the Chinese ideas of "love" in the English lexicons of passion, desire, and romance? What were considered the (im)proper expressions and behaviors of "love" between sovereigns and subjects, parents and children, husbands and wives? Why did metaphors of "love" often go hand in hand with the aspiration for political engagement and the appreciation of literary talents? How did the concepts of "love" challenge Confucian social and moral hierarchies by bonding individuals as equals, which marked the advent of the modern era? And lastly, in what ways can the transformation of "love" over the two millennia of Chinese cultural history broaden our contemporary perceptions of selfhood, partnership, and community? We will probe into these issues through some of the most essential Chinese literary and cultural texts from the 8th century B.C.E. to the 20th century, examining a variety of genres including poetry, plays, memoirs, and fictional narratives. We will also discuss contemporary media adaptations and visit the Penn Museum, exploring different perspectives to approach textual sources. This course is organized both chronologically and thematically: in each week, we read representative works from a specific historical period. They together illuminate both the paradigm of "love" at a given historical time and the transformation of "love" in Chinese culture in the longue duree. The format of the course contains a mixture of lecture and discussion, with a special focus on developing students' skills of close reading.