Thesis (M.A.): Guo li zheng zhi da xue / Mimeo. copy. Includes bibliography.

In 1962, very few people within the Peoples Republic of China (PRC) had ever heard of Lei Feng, a young soldier who died in a tragic accident while driving a truck for the People's Liberation Army. The following year, his name was known throughout China as one of the finest young soldiers that the country had ever produced. In years to come, his diary was put in the hands of everyone from school children to soldiers to serve as a model for the ideal Chinese citizen. Furthermore, as Chinese culture evolved, so did the Lei Feng image, changing from citizen-soldier in 1963 to socialist entrepreneur after 1978. This study's focus is how Lei Feng has become not only a model Chinese citizen-soldier and entrepreneur, but a successful example to fellow nations of how they, too, could mold the ideals of their citizens for generations to come.

The study examined China's conduct of its most important overseas propaganda activities in the United States during World War II. The findings showed that the main characteristics of China's propaganda in the United States in the war years included, (a) official propaganda in the United States was operated by the Chinese News Service and its branch offices in several cities; (b) unofficial propaganda involved work by both Americans and Chinese, among them, missionaries, newspapermen, and businessmen who tried to help China for different reasons; (c) both China lobby and Red China lobby, changed people's image about China, either the Nationalists or the Communists; and (d) propaganda toward the overseas Chinese in the United States was to collect donations and stir up patriotism.

中國宣傳畫作為中國政治社會變遷的記錄儀，擁有著深遠的史料價值和時代特徵。本研究運用Roland Barthes的圖像符號學理論作為分析工具，探討1949至2008年期間中國宣傳畫中圖文符號的意義指涉和運作規則。本研究將中國宣傳畫分為「中共建國時期」、「大躍進時期」、「文化大革命時期」與「改革開放時期」四個歷史階段；在每一個時期的宣傳畫中，則重點分析偉人領袖、工農兵、女性以及兒童這四類人物符號；歸納出這些人物符號在時代中的變遷以及他們所體現的意識形態與社會政治文化脈絡。 本研究發現，中國宣傳畫呈現出了領袖崇拜、敵我矛盾與階級身份的圖像符號運作原則；文字與圖像意義的連結較為緊密，圖文能產生強烈的對應關係。中國宣傳畫的意符與意指穩固了民眾的服從，它們來自傳統的文化，蘊含無數的集體記憶，也反映出群眾值得追求和嚮往的「目標」；這些「目標」均為國家的重要施政方針，例如：熱烈從事生產建設與追隨領導人等。雖然中國宣傳畫運用寫實主義的手法來勾勒出人民生活的圖景，但並非完全真實的反映，這種「真實」是經過政治考量之後被選擇與建構的「真實」。中國共產黨官方意識型態與社會主義價值觀支配著中國宣傳畫所傳遞的訊息，宣傳畫「再現」意識形態的同時，也展現出「去菁英化」的無產階級文化。然而改革開放之後，由於社會轉型和市場化進程，宣傳畫也反映出中國的中產階級與小資產階級文化的逐步發展。 / As the recorder of the changes of Chinese political society, Chinese propaganda posters showed remarkable historical values and characteristics of the times. Using Roland Barthes’ pictorial semiotics, we studied in this review the implications and rules of the images and texts signs of Chinese propaganda posters between 1949 and 2008. The review was divided into four parts: Building the People's Republic, The great leap forward and back, Cultural revolution and China opens up. In each part, four types of character signs were analyzed: great leaders, workers/farmers/soldiers, women and children. The changes of the character signs in different times and the development of ideology and social political cultures indicated by the changes were generalized. The research results indicate that Chinese propaganda posters illustrate the semiotic rules of worship to leaders, the contradiction and the classes. The close connection between images and texts generate strong correspondence. The signifier and signified in Chinese propaganda posters, which strengthened the obedience of people, came from Chinese traditional culture and involved numerous collective memories. They also reflected the targets people pursued, which were the government’s major policies, such as great emphasis on manufacturing and construction industry, or adherence to the leaders. Although the vision of people’s life was depicted in the posters in a realistic way, it was not purely real, but a politically tailored ‘reality’. The official ideology of Chinese Communist Party and socialism values dominated the information conveyed by the posters. The posters showed proletarian culture, which involved populism, as well as representing the official ideology. However, after the beginning of reform and opening, the propaganda posters started to show the development of the culture of the middle class and petty-bourgeois in China brought by the transition and the marketization of the society.