Making China Great Again Evan Osnos

Abstruse

In recent years, some scholars of international politics have argued for the demand to integrate the utilize of visual media into our understanding of global politics. In this respect, film (or movies) represents an constructive media of communicating powerful ideas and political worldviews through a smorgasbord of sound and sensory experiences. This essay seeks to depict on the theoretical insights of scholars of visual international politics to clarify the ongoing geopolitical conflict between the The states and China. It will do so by examining 2 box-office hits in the West and China, namely, the Avengers and Wolf Warrior. Through a study of some of the key storylines in these films, this essay seeks to flesh out the differences in Sino-Western conceptions of patriotism, skillful and evil, and salvation. It argues that these differences are not just a matter of aesthetic preferences, but reflect more central ideas and political worldviews salient in the thinking of People's republic of china and the West.

"This is the fight of our lives. And nosotros're going to win. Whatever information technology takes." (Steve Rogers as Captain America, Avengers: Endgame)

"Even if at that place's a small take a chance, we owe this to everyone who is not in this room." (Natasha Romanoff as Black Widow, Avengers: Endgame)

"Those who offend China volition be punished even if they are far abroad" (犯我中华者虽远必诛)

(Leng Feng, Wolf Warrior 2)

"Y'all retrieve the U.s. Marines are the best in the world? Where are they now?" (Leng Feng, Wolf Warrior 2)

Introduction

Films—as cultural artifacts—have long been recognized for their relevance to international politics and as a medium of political communication and social commentary [11]. To this end, the topic of international disharmonize and war is an evergreen theme of box-office involvement, a reflection of the perennial character of conflict which continues to interest and intrigue people all over the world. ^{Footnote i} At the same time, given our postal service-literate historic period, most people get much of their information about international diplomacy from films, or more broadly, from visual media. As William Callahan puts it in a recent study on the role of visuals in international relations, "because visuals can viscerally movement us in unexpected ways…they need to be appreciated not simply in terms of their ideological-value, only also in terms of their affect-work; not just what they hateful, only too how they make usa experience, both equally individuals as collectives" [8].

With this backdrop in mind, this newspaper seeks to interrogate the geopolitical conflict between China and the United States through a comparative analysis of 2 films which—as I volition argue—proffer united states important insights into the political worldview and cultural identity of the ii super powers. Through an analysis of the Avengers: Endgame (2018) and Wolf Warrior ii (2017), this essay seeks to flesh out the varying conceptions of patriotism, good and evil, and salvation that are being narrated in both films and what they tell u.s.a. about the political graphic symbol and ideological beliefs of China and the West (or America). I chose these two films equally a point of dissimilarity for several reasons:

Firstly, both Avengers: Endgame and Wolf Warrior 2 were box-office successes, thus suggesting that their storylines and themes take box-office entreatment, and thus speak to a wide audience'south view of their country'southward ideals. In the example of Endgame, the film grossed $858.4 million in the Usa and Canada and $ane.939 billion outside North America for a worldwide total of $two.8 billion, making it the highest grossing picture show of all fourth dimension (before adjusting for inflation). ^{Footnote 2} Interestingly, the film was also the highest grossing foreign film of all time ($629.1 million) ^{Footnote 3} in China and 4th highest overall, an indication that its themes had also universal entreatment beyond Due north America. In the example of Wolf Warrior 2 (zhanlang er 战狼二), it was the highest grossing film of all fourth dimension in China ($874 million) and was the get-go and only Chinese movie always to be included in the list of the tiptop 100 all-time highest grossing films worldwide, including being the highest grossing non-English picture of all fourth dimension. ^{Footnote 4}

Secondly, both movies bargain with themes of international disharmonize and specific responses to these conflicts. In the case of Avengers: Endgame, a group of superheroes (the Avengers) is required to put aside their differences to have on the evil villain Thanos, and to relieve half of humanity which had disintegrated following the events of an before motion picture. ^{Footnote v} In Wolf Warrior ii, it tells of People's republic of china's deadliest special forces operative Leng Feng who afterward settling into a tranquility life on the body of water was forced to exit his idyllic lifestyle and return to his role as a soldier equally a issue of attacks against medical aid workers by fell artillery dealers. As a sequel to an before film, ^{Footnote 6} information technology portrays Leng Feng as part of the "Wolf Warrior" unit of measurement, an elite unit of measurement within the People's Liberation Army (PLA) charged with the task of simulating strange tactics for the PLA to train against. As this essay will testify, embedded in the narratives of both films lie deeper questions of duty, loyalty, and the struggle of good versus evil. This dovetails well with our written report of international conflict which often involves decisions made that necessitate the demand for war, and violence, in order to preserve the greater good. While information technology is beyond the scope of this essay to provide a comprehensive answer to the conditions that would be necessary and legitimate to prosecute state of war, these films permit us to appreciate—from a comparative, and aesthetic perspective—the similarities and differences in the nature of conflict, the responses that are needed, and how violence in the service of the greater good is being justified.

Thirdly, the choices of the heroes in both movies are as well being held equally models and paragons of arcadian virtue. While this essay is non meant to be an in-depth study of the film characters, nonetheless, the traits exhibited by the movie protagonists provide the states with some clues as to the desired qualities of a hero and what they tell united states about the wider socio-political values of the societies they purport to represent. In the case of Avengers: Endgame, I will look at Captain America (portrayed past Chris Evans) and likewise Atomic number 26 Man (Robert Downey Jr.) and how these two key protagonists reflect certain qualities and personal attributes that are seen as heroic and worthy of emulation in the W. In the same way, Leng Feng—every bit the soldier par excellence—provides us with some clues concerning the blazon of person and qualities that are desired in Chinese political culture and that of the archetype patriot. How do these characteristics (or virtues) inform our understanding of American (or more than broadly, Western) and Chinese societies and the values that are idealized? How do these attributes fit within the broader political narrative(s) permeating these societies, and to what extent are these ideals reflective of more basic differences existing between them, and the existence—if any—of common ground that can be found?

The remaining of this paper will be every bit follows. First, I volition provide a brief introduction of the literature linking visuality to international politics and how they provide us with interesting ways of picturing, indeed visualizing, the practice of international relations and more importantly, the meanings backside those practices. Next, I go on to examine both films using a comparative approach focusing on how the themes of patriotism, good and evil, and salvation are being constructed and consequently visualized. Finally, I conclude with some reflections on how such an assay can provide scholars of international relations (particularly scholars of Sino-American politics) to critically examine our own assumptions apropos self-other identities and the extent to which films can provide united states with new ways to reframe our understanding of great powers relations and a more realistic appraisal of geopolitical rivalry.

The Visual Plough in International Relations: Moving from Text to Images

Since Roland Bleiker'southward declaration of an "artful plow" in IR theory in 2001 [3], a number of critical scholars have attempted to utilize the insights proffered by Bleiker to make sense of changes in the global political landscape and more importantly, how all-time to translate political phenomena including the ideologies behind them. Amidst them, William Callahan's exposition of the necessity to "visualize" international relations instead of existence confined within parameters of textual soapbox represents a useful vantage point with which to anchor my subsequent analysis [8]. Every bit argued, visual artifacts are more than illustrations of credo and that they possess bureau, including the power to "do" things and "make" things. Instead of simply illustrating international events as visual texts, visual images tin can "actively create international politics equally visual performance that viscerally move and connect people in unexpected ways" [8]. Relating this to the do of film-making, Callahan further observes that it provides a ways to explore the "intricacies and intensities" of how politics works through "cocky/Other relations" equally "state-to-country relations interact with people-to-people relations through experiences of hospitality, estrangement, intimacy and vulnerability." ^{Footnote 7} Seen this way, nosotros can get beyond seeing and framing international politics in terms of ideology to appreciate its "affective annals," or as one critique of rational knowledge puts it, filmmaking can provide a "mode of thought ameliorate than knowledge" for agreement international politics [8].

Before we go on to examine the afore-mentioned two films, several caveats are in order. Firstly, cynics might dismiss film as cultural propaganda, be information technology Western or Chinese in origins, and thus dismiss annihilation of value that can be said almost it. Such a line of argument is necessarily simplistic and unconvincing for it forecloses opportunities to appoint in a deeper and more considered understanding of the ideational conditions that frame how actors (and states) think and human activity in their international politics. A 2d caveat is that this essay does not attempt to figure out exactly what the director/media companies had in the production of the film. Amid media practitioners, there is often an inevitable want to effort and plough through media products to uncover the bodily reality of what lies behind the film, or in other words, what the director of the moving-picture show really had in mind in making a particular film, or to movie a particular scene. This is non to say that one can indulge in infinite interpretive speculations; indeed, I assume there was really an reply—or reality—that a flick-maker hopes to narrate except that this is not the intention of the essay to find out. Furthermore, the possibility that other meanings may likewise surface in the procedure of interpretation which may evade the original intention of the motion-picture show producer suggests the hermeneutics of film may be more problematic that is originally supposed since authorial intent may not be the only source of data apropos the meaning of a film. Finally information technology should exist said—for all intentions and purposes—that I do not view these films as simply "pure amusement" though I suppose 1 could do then and still draw similar conclusions equally I exercise. Just as Callahan and others have observed, films—as cultural products—are besides sites of contestation (intended or otherwise) and it behooves scholars of international relations to examine them closely to uncover some of the basic themes and ideas they purport to tell the states and how these speak to broader issues and debates concerning global politics [14, 23].

Avengers Endgame: From Universal Conflict to American Leadership

Clocking in at 181 min, the Avengers: Endgame (2019) is a direct sequel to the 2018 film Avengers: Infinity War as the surviving Avengers and their allies seek to reverse the damage caused by the villain Thanos in Infinity State of war in which half of humanity had disintegrated. To do and so, the Avengers had to travel back in time to obtain six infinity stones—which Thanos had earlier possessed and used—before an earlier Thanos could retrieve them. After doing so, the Avengers reunited in the present and were able to contrary the disintegration; however, Thanos was able to travel to the present, bringing along together his entire army. The Avengers and their revived allies thus wage a last battle with Thanos and his forces and defeat them. The victory however was not without cost, as two of the main characters among the Avengers lost their lives. Tony Stark (aka Ironman) sacrificed his life in social club to defeat Thanos while Natasha Romanoff (Blackness Widow) besides lost her life earlier in the film in the course of retrieving one of the infinity stones (the Soul Stone). As a film, Avengers: Endgame deals with the familiar theme of conflict and war, on a global calibration no less, and other mutual interrelated subtopics such as universal redemption, the pursuit of unity (despite private differences), and the need for personal sacrifice. From the vantage point of the three themes we have highlighted before (patriotism, proficient vs evil, and the result of salvation), Endgame allows u.s.a. to capeesh—from a visual perspective—how these themes are being understood, framed, and played out inside the film narrative.

Equally a major graphic symbol, Captain America personifies the American Hero (or at least a highly identifiable archetype of such a hero) and calls to mind the quintessential platonic of what it means to be a patriot of the American state. In the words of Steve Rogers, the state of war against Thanos was the "fight of their lives and we are going to win, whatever information technology takes." Interestingly, this emphasis on the collective ("nosotros") instead of the individual ("I") challenges dominant stereotype of the Usa as a highly individualistic club and where rugged individualism is ofttimes celebrated as a virtue [1]. In the case of the Avengers, it was evident that no one unmarried individual had the ability or chapters to defeat Thanos. Furthermore, all of them possessed sure character flaws which rendered them imperfect superheroes. ^{Footnote 8} In Captain America's instance, this imperfection is juxtaposed alongside his determination to succeed in his mission at all costs, thus resulting in him having to forego the well-existence to his personal dearest-life ^{Footnote 9} and also having to insist on the correctness of his political ideology even if information technology ways having to confront one's ain allies. In the latter, this was being played out in the motion picture Captain America: Civil War (2016) in which the Avengers were being divided against ane another, with ane camp aligning with Steve Rogers and the other with Tony Stark (Atomic number 26 Human). Be that as it may, these internal divisions—in American political life—tin can exist placed bated in the service of a greater proficient when the demand arises and collective cooperation takes precedence over private self-pursuit. This is suggestive of a broader ideational vision of what a patriot entails which, contrary to popular narrative, does not insist the pursuit of individual objectives at all costs. Equally observed by George McKenna, the sources of American patriotism can exist traced dorsum to Reformation Protestantism resulting in an activist theology which stressed collective rather than individual salvation [xix]. At the same time, and given the picture'due south premise of worldwide war, beingness America's patriot is portrayed not as narrow nationalism, but also evinces a broader responsibility to the wider community, even if the outcomes may non always exist what Washington had originally planned or hoped for.

To be certain, the influence of Machiavellian politics (and the often cited phrase "there are no permanent friends or permanent enemies, only permanent interests") has generated a deep distrust concerning the viability of international cooperation and whether patriotism can co-exist with the objective of existence a global citizen. That said, the notion that a country's ultimate responsibility to its citizens and citizens alone may not be only viable image accounting for state sovereignty and subjectivity. In Tan'south study of the political regimes of Southeast Asian states (many who are fiercely protective of their own national sovereignties), it was proposed that Emmanuel Levinas' concept of responsibleness provided an alternative vision to explain the need for cooperation without existence trapped in instrumental or utilitarian logic. As observed, "the most visibly apparent overarching theme in Levinas' thought is responsibility – not to the self but to and for the other. In contrast to the Enlightenment-inspired notion of being as democratic, given, and therefore sovereign, Levinas understood it as a radically interdependent condition…responsibility to the other therefore comes before everything else" (italics mine) [28]. Specifically, individuals are too being constructed by manner of their relationship with and to the other, an always-present indebtedness to the other that marks and defines one'south very ain identity and subjectivity [28]. Seen this way, one might then say that patriotism or devotion to one's country is not necessarily at odds with the commitment to the wider globe. On the contrary, beingness a patriot requires 1 to look beyond the frontiers of one's own nationality and to consider a broader definition of citizenship, indeed equally a "global citizen" and the obligations which such citizenship entail, fifty-fifty if there are no firsthand, discernible benefits to oneself. As quipped past Blackness Widow, "fifty-fifty if at that place'south a small chance [of success], we owe this to anybody who is non in this room."

Secondly, equally far every bit the discussion of good versus evil is concerned, Endgame at commencement glance possesses a fairly bones plotline with the Avengers and their allies beingness on the side of good while Thanos and his forces on the side of evil. Yet a closer exam suggests that this seemingly straight-forrad storyline belies a deeper moral narrative: one is skillful or evil non considering of anything inherent, merely as a result of the choices one chooses to make. While this runs confronting the Augustinian theology of original sin which shades much of Western thinking [5], ^{Footnote 10} at the same time, human beings—as moral agents—are also responsible for their ain actions. In the example of Thanos, his murderous actions were justified by the need to eliminate half of humanity and so equally to preserve the other half ("by eliminating half of life, the other one-half will thrive") and presumably with the goal of making himself the savior of those alive who will in turn express gratitude to him ("[I will] create a new [universe]. Teeming with life, merely knows non what it has lost merely just what it has been given. A grateful universe.") On the reverse, the Avengers justified their quest to reclaim the stones—and the potential loss of life the quest would entail—to bring dorsum those who were lost. Seen this way, heroic deportment are evidenced past the willingness to lay downward i's own life for others while villainous actions are defined by the inclination to use—even sacrifice—others to achieve 1'southward own ends (no thing how noble these objectives might be). From this, we run into that categories of skilful and evil are non ontological ones, but rather they derive from how individuals choose to act upon their external world. Moral bureau is never absent from the individual cocky, adept and evil are the results of individual actions, and non considering of annihilation inherent. This chemical element of moral agency is further amplified by the fact that members of the Avengers were often portrayed every bit imperfect individuals throughout the Marvel Universe films ^{Footnote 11} and however were able to act rightly and sacrificially in the hour of need. Likewise despite his actions, Thanos possesses some redeeming factors, notably in his relationship to his girl Gamora whom he sacrifices in the Infinity War in order to procure the Soul Stone. While this may seem ironical, the fact that Thanos retains a soft spot for Gamora suggests that he may non exist wholly evil. Indeed, this intricate interplay of proficient and evil in the world brings to mind the words of the Russian novelist Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn that reality is far more complicated:

The line separating good and evil passes not through states, nor between classes, nor between political parties either – but right through every human heart…even within hearts overwhelmed by evil, one small bridgehead of good is retained. And even in the best of all hearts, there remains…an uprooted small corner of evil. [27]

Thirdly, the issue of salvation or redemption arguably lies at the heart of the Avengers: Endgame. To the question of what does it have to save the lives of others, the reply is unequivocal, that is, "whatever it takes," a line repeated three times in the film. While this may exist self-evident at first glance, the context of the film suggests a deeper, fifty-fifty spiritual, meaning from which the respond is framed within. Unlike most Hollywood films in which the hero ofttimes survives, Endgame furnishes united states with a plot twist in which the hero of the picture, Tony Stark (Iron Man), sacrifices himself at the finish in social club to defeat Thanos. The fact that Fe Man had earlier expressed his reluctance to render to his Avengers-fighting days as a result of him settling downwardly with Pepper Potts and having a daughter further amplifies the sense of loss.

Relating to the above themes discussed, namely, patriotism, good-and-evil, and redemption, I argue Avengers: Endgame reflects first and foremost a quintessential Western portrayal of universal values, which is most emphatically linked to the values that are desired by America. The leading part played by Helm America in the motion-picture show is certainly no coincidence if we consider that Steve Rogers—in his character—exemplifies the qualities that are ofttimes idealized in an American hero, that of a patriot and the sacrifices that must exist made in order to become one. But more than that, it can be said that Endgame puts forth another political suggestion, in that American values are universal because they are inherently attractive to the world. Ever since Joseph Nye's exposition of soft ability as a means of success to world politics, American soft power has often been touted as a crucial element in promoting America'southward influence worldwide [xx]. Whether ane believes it or not and any the criticisms of American waning soft power influence, peculiarly during the Trump administration, claims to universality have always been a hallmark of American political worldview. This is virtually vividly emphasized past liberal scholars who view the promotion of free marketplace principles and strengthening international institutions equally key features of the global international society. As the argument goes, liberal thinkers consider the pursuit of political and economical freedom as a universally desired goal and the function of the United States both as an enabler and exemplar in the quest for such an objective [17]. In this respect, to be an American patriot is—at its core—seen to exist synonymous with beingness a adept global citizen and what is seen as good for America is as well viewed equally being by and large good for the globe.

Such a mindset naturally as well sees the upshot of skillful-versus-evil every bit not one of between states (as if there is something inherent in a state that tin can exist considered "evil" or "practiced), but rather one that is being fought at a metaphysical level (hence Thanos who is personified as a villain without origins or ancestry) that goes beyond interstate or intrastate conflict. In this respect, the United States—as epitomized past Captain America—is seen to be leading the fight against evil, edifice a coalition of unlikely, even unruly allies (every bit the complicated relationships betwixt the Avengers go) in standing up for practiced confronting the evil forces of the globe (who are portrayed equally being blindly loyal to Thanos). Indeed, if we recall the "axis of evil" coined past George W. Bush in his war on terror entrada or Ronald Reagan's "evil empire" during the Cold War against the Soviet Union, the worldview of the United States is one which sees international conflict as reflective of a perpetual Manichean conflict betwixt good and evil with American ethics equally emblematic of the former while the beliefs of its enemies are taken to be of the latter [16].

The upshot of redemption—equally a form of closure—is also a crucial attribute of the United States' political worldview, not to the lowest degree because of the need to win votes by means of generating a sense of well-being and happiness among the American polity. Indeed, the notion of personal redemption is—in the author's view—one of the most salient themes in all of America's film civilisation, as evidenced by the popularity of the flick The Shawshank Redemption, a motion-picture show which traces the story of two imprisoned men whose lives and friendship with 1 another allow both to obtain redemption amidst the harsh conditions of prison house [xiii]. Every bit observed by Shulman, race and redemption correspond constant themes in American political thought, in which ancient biblical prophecy is used to interpret and frame issues of gimmicky American politics, including the idea of American exceptionalism:

For the thought of a chosen people and "redeemer nation", chosen to redeem all humanity from despotism and immorality, resonates fifty-fifty avowedly secular citizens. Such redemptive language entwines democracy and a special American nationhood: Only forty years ago, Martin Luther King Jr. invoked redemptive language to cast racial apartheid as a national failure to laurels a democratic promise; now evangelical Republicans narrate a "jeremiad" depicting the nation decline from its sacred and virtuous origins. Both depict on a deep symbolic structure and prevailing narrative form to name the circumstances, confront the vicissitudes, address the pregnant, and authorize the reconstitution of commonage life. [26]

From this vantage point, nosotros might say the United States, in its exercise of international politics and affairs, is imbued with the same zeitgeist that characterizes its vision of domestic political life: America perceives itself every bit a redeemer nation of the globe and consequently considers itself as having a moral authority to correct the globe of wrongs. Indeed, this impulse to human activity on the side of good (whether others agree American deportment are practiced or otherwise is beside the point) has its roots in religion, every bit Andrew Preston argues.

"Organized religion acted as the conscience of American foreign relations. U.S. foreign policy itself has never really been idealistic and certainly non altruistic. But policymaking elites often had to pursue foreign policy initiatives under an idealistic banner because of popular religious pressures that were themselves idealistic. They had to merge the moralism and progressivism of religion with the unremarkably realist mindset of international politics. Thus the U.S. government was often led to pursue a normative foreign policy…by religious pressures emanating from below". [21]

Summarizing the above word, nosotros see that Avengers: Endgame—as a discursive text—provides us with some of import insights into the characteristics of American political civilisation and consequently its assumptions and thinking into international politics and strange policy. The themes of skillful-and-evil, patriotism, and redemption go along to frame the style in which the The states view itself and its responsibilities to the earth. While American global leadership has come under increased scrutiny of late, particularly during the Trump'southward administration, the themes uncovered in this essay suggest that Washington is unlikely to abdicate its claims to international primacy and to pursue its interests in ways that are radically dissimilar from the past. Indeed, President Biden and senior members of his administration have all articulated their views of how they view America's place in the globe, including maintaining American leadership and promoting values of democracy and freedom through its strange policy in very much the same vein and language of previous administrations (sans Trump) [ii, 10]. To this stop, the United States sees China as its biggest geopolitical challenger, and which nosotros will turn to side by side.

Wolf Warrior: an Uncompromising Vision of Chinese Forcefulness and Superiority

The topic of Wolf Warrior diplomacy was brought vividly to public consciousness in 2020 during the height of the coronavirus pandemic when the Chinese strange ministry embarked on a series of difficult-hitting public statements in response to international criticism and blame over Beijing'southward initial embrace up of the coronavirus when information technology commencement started. Notably, Zhao Lijian, who is the deputy manager of the China's foreign diplomacy ministry building and its spokesperson, was prominently featured. In his tweets and comments, Zhao called the Us to apologize for maxim China was responsible for the coronavirus and he as well promoted a conspiracy theory accusing the United States military machine as being responsible in bringing the virus into China during the Wuhan armed forces games in belatedly 2019. ^{Footnote 12} As observed past Suizheng Zhao, "Chinese diplomats used to be known for their low profile and courtesy just at present known every bit wolf warriors (战狼), derived from the 2018 Chinese movie 'Wolf Warrior' in which a Chinese special-operations fighter defeated Western-led mercenaries and became a national hero for defending Mainland china's overseas interests. No longer emphasizing diplomatic protocol, Chinese diplomats competed to demonstrate a tougher attitude, offensive tone, and more confrontational brutal and ruthless against foreign rivals. The emphasis on fighting (or struggling) highlighted ane of the new features of Xi's foreign policy, conceiving diplomacy equally a war confronting enemy forces that must exist defeated" (italics mine) [xxx].

Seen this fashion, the film Wolf Warrior and its sequel (Wolf Warrior 2) provide usa with an interesting vantage point with which to sympathize how this idea of struggle (douzheng 斗争) is now existence incorporated into the People's republic of china'southward foreign policy lexicon, least of which is in Communist china's response to what it perceives as externally Western-fashioned attacks on the CPC's political legitimacy to rule Cathay. To be certain, this Wolf Warrior course of aggressive diplomacy is not an entirely new evolution, but rather reflects an evolution of Chinese diplomatic stance. As Peter Martin explains, Chinese diplomacy was "modelled on the military force that had propelled the Communists to ability: the People's Liberation Army…They would be combative when needed and disciplined to a fault. They would instinctively find hierarchy and report to their superiors on everything they did…Nigh important, the idea of working as a 'civilian ground forces' underscored the fact that the first loyalty of Chinese diplomats would always be to the Communist Political party" [18]. Given this backdrop and Red china's current international prominence, Chinese scholar Yan Xuetong characterized Beijing as moving from keeping a low profile to striving for accomplishment in its foreign policy, and seeking parity with the West [29]. In add-on, a number of outspoken Chinese scholar-practitioners such as Zhu Chenghu and Liu Mingfu (both PLA senior officers) have made strong remarks against the West in their own writings over the years. For example, Zhu, who heads the PLA National Defense University, said as early on as in 2005 that "if the Americans draw their missiles and position-guided ammunition on to the target zone on China's territory, I think we volition have to respond with nuclear weapons [and] we will ready ourselves for the destruction of all of the cities due east of Xi'an. Of course the Americans will accept to be prepared that hundreds … of cities will be destroyed by the Chinese." ^{Footnote 13}

Notwithstanding these fighting words, Chinese foreign policy rhetoric—up till 2017 or then—had remained relatively guarded. Every bit a point of comparison, the first Wolf Warrior movie which was screened in the bound of 2015 made little touch on in the Chinese box office (grossing US$89 million) and did not fifty-fifty characteristic in the peak 10 box-office hits in the Chinese domestic marketplace. Wolf Warrior 2 however, which was released in the summer of 2017, was an phenomenal domestic success selling almost 159 million tickets at the Chinese box office. What accounts for this sudden plough in fortunes given that both films—in terms of genre and mode—are similar? I possible reason—at least in the writer'south heed—is that while the first film is mostly about China defending its borders from external aggressors, the second film situates Mainland china interests within an international, more than expansive context in which Beijing is portrayed as fulfilling its responsibilities as a global great power. Co-ordinate to the male protagonist and film manager Wu Jing in an interview with journalist Evan Osnos, "in the by, all of our movies were nigh, say, the Opium Wars—how other countries waged state of waragainst Red china…but Chinese people take always wanted to run into that our country could, one day, have the power to protect its own people and contribute to peace in the world." ^{Footnote fourteen} Indeed, I argue that Chinese strange policy circa 2016 has placed a greater premium on Cathay's global contribution, including its claim to exist a good citizen of the international community. ^{Footnote xv} According to Tiang Benefaction Hoo, China's global identity is related to its own identification as a "responsible great power" (fuzeren daguo, 负责任大国)—a phrase that has been a key motif in the Chinese foreign policy dictionary and discourse since President Xi came into power [15]. Indeed, this thought of a responsible great ability fulfilling its international obligations is a central motif in Wolf Warrior two in which the male protagonist Leng Feng was sent to Africa equally a security officer for freight services delivering relief supplies. In relating to the earlier three themes that I have discussed, namely, good-and-evil, patriotism, and redemption, Wolf Warrior 2 provides us with some salient insights into the nature of Chinese society and the type of arcadian values that are operative in Mainland china. In doing so, I volition also make reference to Avengers and then as to highlight similarities and differences where they exist. (This will be summarized in Table 1.)

Tabular array 1 Differences between Avengers: Endgame and Wolf Warrior 2

Full size tabular array

Unlike the Avengers, the Wolf Warrior movies situate conflict and state of war equally an entirely this-worldly construct, one that eschews any notion of catholic evil or metaphysical reality simply instead is focused on the hither-and-now. While this provides a pic with greater realism every bit compared to Avengers (which involve intergalactic infinite travel), the idea that actors (no pun intended) can brand meaningful moral choices to decide is also missing. Equally the hero, Leng is patently on the side of good, but unlike Avengers, the right deportment Leng take are mostly framed in a manner that does not crave him to struggle against his ain conscience or having to go upward against more expedient choices. In other words, Leng's actions are a result of him existence placed in circumstances in which the overwhelming need for survival necessitates certain actions to be taken. Different the characters in the Avengers who had to make the choice to save the world and to extract themselves from their lives of stability, the choice that is offered to Leng is far more than direct-forrad and poses less of a moral dilemma. To some extent such a portrayal of the fight between adept and evil also reflects a highly pragmatic ethos that pervades Chinese political life, one that is less influenced by missionizing impulse and more of preserving the existing political status quo. In both the Wolf Warrior films, Leng Feng is shown as intervening merely because he has to, not because he wants to. Such a mindset squares well with Chinese political worldview in China is often portrayed as acting in defense of its interests rather than being on the offensive to secure its interests [12, 22]. Past casting its deportment every bit largely defensive in nature (safeguarding Chinese interests from a belligerent and hostile external environment, China is able to negate - or at least partly deflect - the criticism that its actions are for offensive or expansionary purposes. As President Eleven himself puts information technology during the 2021 National People's Congress, "The current security situation of our country is largely unstable and uncertain. The unabridged military must coordinate the relationship between capacity edifice and gainsay readiness, be prepared to respond to a diversity of complex and hard situations at any fourth dimension, resolutely safeguard national sovereignty, security and development interests, and provide strong support for the comprehensive construction of a mod socialist state." ^{Footnote 16}

Secondly, the notion of patriotism as fleshed out in Wolf Warrior is also 1 which sees loyalty to China and the CPC as an absolute (or ultimate) value, i which all Chinese citizens ought to unswervingly preserve. While reference to the CPC is absent from the Wolf Warrior films, the fact that the CPC plays an outsized office in Chinese strange policy and international politics is not without dispute: the stories of China and the CPC are joined together at the hip and interwoven in means that one cannot exist without the other. As Kerry Brown writes, "From 1949, there is little daylight between the CPC story and the national one. The 2 became intimately linked…the Party argued it had achieved the salvation of the state. It was the entity that helped Red china throw off the heavy burden of its royal pasts" [half dozen]. 1 item scene in Wolf Warrior 2 poignantly bears this out, admitting in a highly subtle manner. Early in the movie, Leng Feng and members of his special-ops squad bring the remains of a fellow comrade dorsum to his dwelling boondocks for the funeral only to run across the homes there on the verge of beingness torn down completely. After beingness rudely confronted past the Chinese boss of the real estate company—the capitalist enemy who is portrayed as being greedy and lacking in empathy—who also boasts that he volition make the family wish they were expressionless, an enraged Leng kicks the boss in his stomach and ends upwardly killing him. Leng is sent to prison and discharged from the armed services. The scene then cuts into Leng existence stripped of his rank and other military privileges; nevertheless, the narrator (which we presume refers to Leng's own vox and idea) goes on to say "the reason a soldier is respected is non considering of the uniform he wears, just because of the sense of duty he carries. With or without the compatible, his duty remains. And he continues to exist respected." In my view, this statement seems to propose that a soldier's allegiance is not merely to the military, but that he is called to a higher duty, which is presumably (although the motion picture does non say information technology) that of the nation, and the political party. This is a sharp point of contrast from many militaries around the world in which a soldier is respected because of the institution (the military) and the uniform that confers legitimacy to a soldier's actions. In the example of Wolf Warrior 2, the actions of Leng are seen to be legitimate non because they are professionally mandated only because of a college allegiance and sense of duty that Leng is obliged to serving. Seen this way, one might argue that the idea of patriotism—in the Chinese understanding—transcends institutional restraints and professional obligations. As a point of contrast in the Avengers series, both Iron Man and Captain America in Captain America: Civil State of war break ranks with 1 another precisely considering both men had different views of what a patriot means. While Atomic number 26 Human being viewed his loyalties with the international customs, Captain America perceived global institutions and bureaucracies as being essentially limiting (fifty-fifty decadent) and thus chose to take matters into his own hands. Such a moral tension does not be in Wolf Warrior nor are they framed every bit necessary. In the Chinese political worldview, institutions (especially the military) are designed to serve the political party, and do not possess an institutional heed of their own, including the ability to "speak truth to power." ^{Footnote 17} Hence, Leng Feng—despite facing armed forces prosecution—is exonerated in spirit because of his duty to a higher calling and consequently exemplifies the qualities of what a true Chinese patriot is all near: devotion to the Party.

Finally, and this is where Wolf Warrior fundamentally differs from Avengers: a conspicuous absenteeism of the thought of universal redemption. Indeed, my in a higher place ii points have highlighted a highly particularistic and this-worldly character to the Chinese political worldview, one which is less enamored with the attainment of universal salvation and instead is trained on "saving the nation" (jiuguo 救国) and instead, as a means of remedying the retentivity of national humiliation (guochi国耻). Indeed, this emphasis on the here-and-now every bit opposed to matters of eternal destiny is seen in the Confucius saying that "if I do not know the things of life, how tin I know the things after decease" (weizhisheng yanzhisi 未之生 焉知死). Seen this mode, the notion of redemption in the Chinese worldview—this essay contends—is seen non in a futurity secular Eden (the idea of a future paradise on globe derived from Christian eschatology which go on to influence American popular thinking), but rather the return to a glorious arcadian historical past in which China was in one case great and lost its place due to Western assailment and humiliation. As explained past a Lowy Found study on the Chinese worldview, this narrative pushes the idea that "China was a powerful, respected, and peaceful global actor in the past, and this volition one time over again exist its natural and rightful role in the future. Nonetheless, just as hostile international forces encircled Prc and pushed it from this position during the century of humiliation, these forces volition proceed trying to go along China down." ^{Footnote 18} One way of responding to these external forces of aggression is the notion of "cleansing of humiliation" or "revenge" (xuechi 雪耻) which is also Chinese citizens are exhorted to be "potent and powerful" [7]. In this fashion, China portrays its deportment as that of interim in self-defense, not unlike most countries (including the Usa), thus proffering the Chinese Communist Party with the moral high ground with which to frame its political behavior within and to sustain its identity as the ultimate defender of the Chinese nation. As Callahan observes, the narrative of national humiliation never ends and proclaiming National Humiliation Day continues to be a "political act that constructs identity and security long subsequently the century of National Humiliation ended in 1949" [7].

Seen this style, political slogans such as President Eleven'south "rejuvenation of the great Chinese nation" (zhongguo de weida fuxing 中国的伟大复兴) are meant to be understood in a historical sense, in which Xi is only challenge a political mandate that is historically legitimate and which reflect the hopes and aspirations of all Chinese, which is to see the revival of Red china to the status of its glorious by. Linked to this then is the notion that China seeks non to conquer or to get involved in the affairs of others, since the international system back and so was different from present arrangements. This allows Cathay to claim a superior form of morality and exceptionalism vis-à-vis the Due west: China is skillful because it does non seek to conquer, the West is bad because it conquers in the name of redeeming others. Furthermore, as the storyline of Wolf Warrior 2 shows us, whatever interest of Cathay in global affairs is framed in a manner in which China is not shown every bit an aggressor, but rather as a grade of self-defense in respond to external assailment. At the same time, given China's global reach and considerations of dandy power responsibility (as I have before discussed), it is impossible for China for Beijing to be utterly untouched past what happens outside its borders (bold there was fifty-fifty a period in its regal history where it did non become involved in the affairs of others outside its borders).

Hence, one way to exercise and then, every bit Wolf Warrior 2 has shown united states of america, is to present China as a reluctant but trustworthy leader who is able to provide security to others under its care, in dissimilarity to the United states of america, which is seen as a self-proclaimed but ultimately untrustworthy leader whose own narrow interests lead information technology to flee from the theater of conflict. In a dialogue between Leng Feng and a humanitarian doctor Rachel Smith (played past Celina Jade) presently after their escape from their killers, Smith wanted to go to the American Consulate to seek protection and added that "the US marines are stationed in that location. That'south our safest bet." In response, Leng asked her whether "you call back the US marines are the all-time in the earth [and] where are they now?" When Smith said that she had already informed the embassy of the state of affairs through a tweet, Leng remained silent before Smith proceeded to brand a phone call instead. Instead, there was a recorded message maxim that "we are closed" and causing Smith to scream "fuck," and Leng having the concluding express mirth, literally.

Conclusion

Summing upward the differences betwixt the Avengers picture and Wolf Warrior (in Tabular array 1), this essay contends that the differences of in the worldviews of the Us and China are central to the existing debate apropos geopolitical contest between both countries. As Shambaugh observes, this "comprehensive competition" between both countries reflects a "seismic shift in American thinking near China in recent years." Such deep-rooted differences in this author's view cannot be explained simply by recourse to elite manipulation of public stance (although this may be true to a larger degree in China than the United States) nor due to contest over material resources or even because of international geopolitical rivalry. Rather, these differences arise as a result of more than basic cardinal assumptions apropos self-other identities and how political actors sympathize their ain respective countries' national interests and how these are related to everyday practices and political discourse.

That said, I am non suggesting that the differences within Avengers: Endgame and Wolf Warrior movies are ultimately deterministic of the future trajectory of Sino-American relations. Indeed, both movies seem to hint that what happens in the reel globe may have surprising insights for the real earth fifty-fifty if they were not originally intended. In Avengers: Endgame, the death of Iron Man provides some kind of closure for many of the characters that involved in the before apocalyptic conflict, particularly Helm America who eventually decides to pass on the drapery of leadership (as epitomized by the handing over of his shield) to Sam Wilson ("Falcon") and returning to the by to alive with his lover Peggy Carter. As well in the final scenes of Wolf Warrior 2, Leng Feng—whose prime reason for being in Africa was to also locate the killer of his lover Long Xiaoyun—was also immune to return to his military squadron while also shown a video that Long might be all the same alive. Both these scenes hint at the possibility of personal redemption and that individuals can continue to brand meaningful choices even every bit they are placed among the events of war and conflict around them.

In the same manner, geopolitical rivalry—while undoubtedly important to our discussion of international politics and political reality—is not everything. As this essay has shown, the political and personal, international disharmonize and interpersonal relations can often intertwine in surprising ways, thus suggesting that the agency-structure problematic remains very much valid. To this finish, movies—be information technology made in Hollywood or China—may continue to surprise u.s.a. with their insights, challenging us to consider their relevance in making sense of global politics, and that the storylines they purport to narrate not existence far removed from the nature of great power competition.

Notes

7. Information technology is noted that Callahan draws on his experience of research filmmaking which is different in some aspects from making films for mass consumption.

8. This is being fleshed out in the movie The Avengers (2012) besides as in the previous Marvel films featuring the characters in their individual roles.

9. Every bit depicted in the moving picture Captain America: The Kickoff Avenger (2011).

10. The eighteenth-century American preacher Jonathan Edwards too made a like argument in his theological treatise Freedom of the Volition, http://www.reformedreader.org/rbb/edwards/fowindex.htm (retrieved Baronial 18, 2020).

11. For instance, Iron Man is an alcoholic and womanizer while the Blob has a problem controlling his acrimony. In Avengers: Endgame, the warrior Thor was beingness shown equally having a drinking problem while Hawkeye descends into a life of killing following the disintegration of his family.

13. Cited in, Lieggi, Stephanie. "Going Beyond the Stir: The Strategic Realities of Communist china'due south No-First-Apply Policy." Monterey Establish of International Studies, The Nuclear Threat Initiative, Jan ane, 2005, https://www.nti.org/assay/articles/realities-chinas-no-get-go-apply-policy/ (retrieved March 12, 2021). Run across besides, Liu Mingfu. The Communist china Dream: The Cracking Ability Thinking and Strategic Positioning of China in the Post-American Era, trans. (Beijing: CN Times, 2015).

15. One of the key strange policy slogans of President Xi is the idea of a Community of Shared Future for Mankind (renlei mingyun gongtongti 人类命运共同体).

17. What I have in listen are the events leading up to the 2020 American elections where a number of senior military officers criticized President Trump while serving in the military, thus indicating their ultimate loyalty to the Constitution, not the president or the party. For a classic exposition into Chinese hierarchy and political institutions, see, Pye, Lucian W. The Mandarin and the Cadre: Red china's Political Cultures. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 1988.

References

1. Bellah, R.Due north. (1987).Habits of the Middle : Individualism and Commitment in American Life. New York: Harper & Row.

   Google Scholar

2. Biden, J. (2020). Why America Must Lead Over again: Rescuing U.S. Foreign Policy After Trump" Foreign Affairs 99( 2), 64–76.

   Google Scholar

3. Bleiker, R. (2001). The Aesthetic Turn in International Political Theory, Millennium - Journal of International Studies 30 (3), 509-533.

   Article  Google Scholar

4. Bleiker, R. (2017). In Search of Thinking Space: Reflections on the Artful Turn in International Political Theory, Millennium - Periodical of International Studies 45(two), 258–264.

   Article  Google Scholar

5. Boyce, J. (2015). Built-in Bad: Original Sin and the Making of the Western World. Berkeley, CA: Counterpoint Press.

   Google Scholar

6. Brown, Thousand. (2018). Prc's Dream: The Civilisation of Chinese Communism and the Secret Sources of its Power. Cambridge, UK: Polity Press.

   Google Scholar

7. Callahan, W.A. (2006). History, Identity, and Security: Producing and Consuming Nationalism in People's republic of china,Critical Asian Studies 38(two), 179–208.

   Article  Google Scholar

8. Callahan, W.A. (2020). Sensible Politics: Visualizing International Relations. New York: Oxford Academy Press.

   Book  Google Scholar

9. Campbell, D. (2003). Cultural Governance and Pictorial Resistance: Reflections on the Imaging of State of war, Review of International Studies 29, 57–73.

   Article  Google Scholar

10. Campbell, K. & Sullivan, J. (2019). Competition Without Catastrophe: How America Tin can Both Claiming and Co-exist With China. Foreign Affairs 98(5), 96–110.

    Google Scholar

11. Furman, D.J. & Musgrave, P. (2017). Constructed Experiences: How Popular Culture Matters for Images of International Relations, International Studies Quarterly 61 (three), 503–516.

    Article  Google Scholar

12. Feng, H. (2005). The Operational Code of Mao Zedong: Defensive or Offensive Realist?Security studies 14(4), 637–662.

    Article  Google Scholar

13. Grady, M. & Magistrale. T. (2016).The Shawshank Experience: Tracking the History of the World's Favorite Film. New York: Palgrave Macmillan.

    Volume  Google Scholar

14. Grayson, K., Davies, G. & Philpott, S. (2009). Pop Goes IR? Researching the Popular Culture-World Politics Continuum,Politics 29 (3), 155–163.

15. Hoo, T.B. (2018). China's Global Identity: Considering the Responsibilities of Bully Ability. Washington, DC: Georgetown Academy Press.

    Google Scholar

16. Kennedy, C. (2013). The Manichean Temptation: Moralising Rhetoric and the Invocation of Evil in US Foreign Policy, International Politics 50 (v), 623–638.

    Article  Google Scholar

17. Mandelbaum, M. (2002). The Ideas That Conquered the World : Peace, Democracy, and Gratis Markets in the 20-First Century (1st ed.). New York: Public Affairs.

    Google Scholar

18. Martin, P. (2021). Communist china's Civilian Army: The Making of Wolf Warrior Diplomacy. New York: Oxford Academy Press.

    Book  Google Scholar

19. McKenna, G. (2007).The Puritan Origins of American Patriotism. New Haven: Yale University Press.

    Google Scholar

20. Parmar, I. & Cox, M. (2010). Soft Power and Us Foreign Policy : Theoretical, Historical and Gimmicky Perspectives. London: Routledge.

    Book  Google Scholar

21. Preston, A. (2012). Sword of Spirit, Shield of Faith: Organized religion in American War and Diplomacy. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar

22. Raditio, Yard.H. (2015). China's Shifting Behaviour in the S Red china Sea: A Defensive Realist Perspective, American Periodical of Chinese studies 22 (2), 309–328.

    Google Scholar

23. Sachleben, M.A. (2014).World Politics on Screen: Understanding International Relations through Popular Culture. Lexington: The University Press of Kentucky.

    Google Scholar

24. Shapiro, M.J. (2006). The Sublime Today: Re-Partitioning the Global Sensible, Millennium - Journal of International Studies 34(3), 657–681.

    Article  Google Scholar

25. Shapiro, M.J. (2009). Cinematic Geopolitics. London: Routledge.

    Google Scholar

26. Shulman, G. (2004). American Prophecy: Race and Redemption in American Political Culture. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.

    Google Scholar

27. Solzhenitshn, A. (1975). The Gulag Archipelago. New York: Harper and Row.

    Google Scholar

28. Tan, South.S. (2017). Providing for the Other: Rethinking Sovereignty and Responsibility in Southeast Asia, Critical Studies on Security Vol.5 (3), 270-286.

    Article  Google Scholar

29. Yan, X. (2014). From Keeping a Low Contour to Striving for Accomplishment, The Chinese Periodical of International Politics vii (2), 153–184.

    Article  Google Scholar

30. Zhao, South. (2021). Rhetoric and Reality of People's republic of china's Global Leadership in the Context of Covid-nineteen: Implications for the U.s.a.-led Earth Society and Liberal Globalization, Periodical of Contemporary China, Vol. 30 (128), 233-248.

    Article  Google Scholar

Download references

Author data

Affiliations

1. South. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, Singapore

   Benjamin Tze Ern Ho

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Benjamin Tze Ern Ho.

Additional information

Publisher'due south Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Ho, B.T.E. The Avengers and the PLA Wolf Warrior: Pop Narratives and Major Power Competition. East Asia (2022). https://doi.org/x.1007/s12140-022-09385-two

Download commendation

• Received: 12 October 2021

• Accustomed: 26 February 2022

• Published: 07 March 2022

• DOI : https://doi.org/10.1007/s12140-022-09385-ii

Keywords

• U.s.
• Prc
• Visual IR
• Wolf Warrior
• Diplomacy

Making China Great Again Evan Osnos

Source: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12140-022-09385-2

Share this post