TITLE:
Discussion on the Narration of Co-Advancement of Both Sexes Led by Maternalism—Taking “My Sister” and “All about My Mother” as Examples
AUTHORS:
Longguo Tian, Yue Hu
KEYWORDS:
Maternal Narration, Gender Relations, Antimaternalism, Female Narration
JOURNAL NAME:
Advances in Journalism and Communication,
Vol.11 No.1,
March
24,
2023
ABSTRACT: The two films “My Sister” and “All about My Mother” focus on two kinds of family relations respectively, showing the female image as a mother in different family structures. The formation and development of “maternalism” as an idea were accompanied by the development and changes of feminism. At the beginning of the 20th century, maternalism was introduced into China from Europe, which set off a social trend of women’s liberation in China, and has deeply affected the development of gender society. This paper will summarize the theories related to maternalism and compare and analyze the two films by using case studies to show the struggles and confusion of contemporary women in family relationships and the transformation of their awareness, perception and identity of maternalism, which are revealed in two families and two relationships. On the other hand, it also shows the exploration and breakthrough of maternalism in contemporary narrative films, trying to reconcile the social repugnance and gender opposition brought about by excessive “feminism”, promoting the thinking and growth of men with women’s situation, starting from the demand of gender harmony, emancipating maternalism, and achieving the ethical harmony model of gender progress.