Premarital sex in China and its representation in movies

Abstract

Due to China's open door policy and global development, Chinese society has become more and more open; the Chinese attitude towards premarital sex has changed. Films can reflect people's social attitudes, norms and values towards several issues, with premarital sex being one of them. Thus, through movies we can grasp both the filmmakers’ and people’s perception and attitudes towards premarital sex as well as the gradual changes. The thesis adopts a comparative approach and analyzes five modern Chinese films, five Chinese films from the 1980s and five modern western films. Through an assessment of Chinese movies, the thesis intends to observe changes in attitudes towards premarital sex in the current age from several decades ago. By comparing recent western films and Chinese films, it allows us to discover the ways in which premarital sexual behavior is expressed within these two cultures; economically, politically and socially different regions of the world.