| dc.description.abstract | Having identified a gap in research about Chinese immigration in Spanish film and television, this thesis provides a critical examination of (Spanish-) Chineseness and Chinese immigration as portrayed in contemporary Spanish screen media. It responds to the questions: how is '(Spanish-) Chineseness' represented across Spanish film and television, and how are relationships between (Spanish-) Chinese and Spanish citizens depicted? The responses to these questions are informed by socio-anthropological enquiries into Chinese movement to Spain, and through close analysis of chosen films and television series. The thesis identifies that employing the notion of 'hybridity,' which has a complex history mapped across sociology, anthropology, history, and media studies, is an incisive way of addressing these research questions. Scholars have disagreed regarding the usefulness of hybridity and remain entrenched in a 'celebratory/oppositionist' debate. Whilst there are manifold definitions of 'hybridity,' the definition used in this thesis is based on Ien Ang's interpretation of the term as signifying "complicated entanglement rather than identity, togetherness-in-difference rather than virtual apartheid." In other words, as various populations are forced to co-exist, embracing hybridity is a pragmatic response to an increasingly interconnected global network. In particular, I argue that across the films and programmes analysed, the 'hybrid act' manifests as a means through which (Spanish-) Chinese and Spanish characters resist expressions of violence, racism, and intolerance. Throughout, I identify that 'hybrid acts' are predominantly physical border-breaking gestures, usually enacted with the intention of countering (hegemonic) expressions of violence and racism. These acts are, as such, driven by a motive to defy and resist practices of Othering and intolerance. Chapter 1 analyses the representation of female (Spanish-) Chineseness in La fuente amarillo (dir. Miguel Santesmases, 1998) as a form of 'corporeal malediction,' in turn using the concept of tone to understand how the hybrid act both counters acts of intolerance, and is challenged by practices of violence. Chapter 2 considers representations of female Chineseness and the hybrid act in Biutiful (dir. Alejandro González Iñárritu, 2010), arguing that the film's female Chinese character both engenders and facilitates the hybrid act of caregiving. Chapters 3 and 4 on the programmes Cuéntame cómo pasó (La1, 2001-present) and Física o química (Antena 3, 2008-2011) consider representations of (Spanish-) Chineseness in both a child and an adolescent character, situating these programmes within the context of public service television. Finally, Chapter 5 analyses the representation of Spanish-Chineseness in the female authored festival film, arguing that the hybrid act is primarily enacted by and between women. These case studies highlight that potential nuances in representations of (Spanish-) Chineseness are to be found within Spanish screen media, nuances which have previously been attenuated in other scholarly accounts of the texts in question. Importantly, this thesis contributes to existing scholarship on representations of migration across Spanish film and television. This is achieved not only through its in depth engagement with (Spanish-) Chinese identity, but also through its nuanced analysis of how relationships between (Spanish-) Chinese and Spanish citizens are shown to develop. Additionally, this points scholars to expand their research into representations of interracial contact not only on Spanish screens, but more widely, across texts from other national contexts. | en_GB |
