From the Periphery to the Center: Interpreting the Prostitute Images in Yan Ge Ling's Novel The Flowers of War with Jung's Archetype Theory
Abstract
As a prominent Chinese female writer active on the world stage, Yan Ge Ling has consistently demonstrated her female writing style through her novel The Flowers Of War, which revolves around the Nanjing Massacre and features a portrayal of prostitutes as the main characters. The Flowers Of War adopts a unique perspective from a special group, employing its splendid audio-visual techniques to portray the brutal memories of that war. In the academic sphere, there has been some debate about whether this novel and its adaptation into a film embody feminist themes. This paper utilizes Jungian psychoanalysis and the theory of archetypes to elucidate the process of individuation for the prostitute characters in the text and analyze their significance in conveying the author's feminist themes. Ultimately, the paper addresses the points of contention surrounding this issue.
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