酷異亞美:王穎的華裔美國電影

Abstract

本論文探討王穎三部華裔美國電影：《喫一碗茶》、《千年善禱》、《內布拉斯加公主》，從電影中「小孩」的隱喻出發，討論華裔美國人悖離父權傳統的「酷異性」。我主張，「酷異性」讓華裔美國人在幾個特定的歷史過渡期或社群認同發生困難的情況下，探索不同的未來，也因此突顯了華裔美國人主體與時俱變的特質。 論文分成五章。第一章為緒論，簡述酷兒理論及其在亞美研究脈絡中的運用。我認為王穎的電影呼應了九〇年代以降亞美研究對亞美社群多元雜匯特質的注意，指出亞美經驗和華裔美國人身份不斷變動的本質。第二章探討《喫一碗茶》中的早期華美社群，指出電影中的人物如何因為對父權價值的彈性理解，而能延續家族與社群的命脈。第三章探討《千年善禱》，主張將影片中呈現的世代衝突，解讀成讓雙方更了解彼此所作的努力。我認為《千年善禱》刻畫華裔美國為一個文化交流和協商的跨國籍空間。第四章探討《內布拉斯加公主》，指出影片將華美社群的離散與分裂，詮釋為華裔美國人與其他族群聯盟的機會。最後，我回顧王穎的電影創作歷程，解釋王穎持續挑戰刻板印象的努力，正好呼應了本論文「酷異性政治」的主題。

This thesis aims to study Wayne Wang’s Chinese American films: Eat a Bowl of Tea, A Thousand Years of Good Prayers and The Princess of Nebraska. Attention is given to the ways in which the motif of “children” in these films introduces a kind of “queerness” of Chinese Americans that derails from patriarchal lineage. By looking into how this “queerness” propels Chinese Americans toward different futures in times of transition or difficult situations, I argue that Wang’s Chinese American films have foregrounded the changeability and contingency of Chinese American subjectivities. This thesis is divided into five chapters. Chapter One gives a brief review on the intersection between queer theory and Asian American studies. I see Wang’s films as akin to critics’ efforts to identify the shifting nature of Asian American experiences and Chinese American identities. Chapter Two studies Eat a Bowl of Tea. I analyze the ways in which the flexibility of patriarchal values enables the early Chinese American community to survive and live on. Chapter Three studies A Thousand Years of Good Prayers. I propose to read the intergenerational conflicts as constant efforts to improve mutual understanding. I also point out that the desire for generational reconciliation has rendered Chinese America a transnational space for cultural exchange and negotiations. Chapter Four studies The Princess of Nebraska. I suggest that the diluted sense of Chinese American community has been recast in the film as opportunities for individuals to form alliances with people of different ethnic backgrounds. In the concluding chapter, I reflect on Wayne Wang’s filmography and point out a “queer politics” deriving from Wang’s continuous efforts to explore the opportunities for self-invention by breaking away from norms and stereotypes.