The story of "Mochou" : a cultural history study of a urban cultural symbol

Abstract

This thesis scrutinizes “Mochou” (莫愁) within the context of cultural history study. The symbol of “Mochou” is a long-­lasting and well-­known cultural symbol in Chinese cultural history, and it is mainly represented with the forms of the lady of “Mochou” and Mochou Lake. The developing process of the symbol is involved with issues about historical geography, literary texts, urban landscapes and cultural memory. An examination of the generation and transformation of the cultural symbol of “Mochou”, as well as its interaction with particular social cultural context could be regarded as a creative methodology of cultural history study. The symbol of “Mochou” Originally showed up with the form of the lady of “Mochou”, a prostitute in the Xiang-mian area in 6th Century. In exploring the interaction between the lady and the indigenous society, it argues that it is the social and cultural condition of Xiang-mian area that provided this symbol an opportunity to enter the historical memory at the very beginning. By a historical geography study and a textual research of the literary works, a clear relationship of the three versions of the legends of Mochou was demonstrated, indicating the transforming process of the cultural memory in time and space. Upon combining with urban culture of Nanjing when Mochou Lake became popular, the transformation of the image of the symbol of “Mochou” mirrored Nanjing’s political character of urbanity, which suggests a political influence to the urban culture of the city; After Taiping Rebellion, the competition over the right to interpret local culture and history persisted over time, and diverse narratives of post-war memory grant us an opportunity to rethink that period of history. Taking the symbol of “Mochou” as an entry point and examining its diverse interpretations is a useful approach to understanding a specific historical context.

Date of Award	2014
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology