Contesting Chineseness: An Examination of Religion and National Identity in Mainland China
For citizens of many countries around the world, religion is a necessary-though often contested-component of their national identity. From the vantage point of the symbolic boundaries approach, we argue that the Chinese government and various other social actors are in contestation to define "C...
| Auteurs: | ; |
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| Type de support: | Électronique Article |
| Langue: | Anglais |
| Vérifier la disponibilité: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | En cours de chargement...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Publié: |
Wiley-Blackwell
[2018]
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| Dans: |
Journal for the scientific study of religion
Année: 2018, Volume: 57, Numéro: 2, Pages: 318-340 |
| Sujets / Chaînes de mots-clés standardisés: | B
China
/ Religion
/ Conscience nationale
/ Identité politique
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| RelBib Classification: | AG Vie religieuse KBM Asie |
| Sujets non-standardisés: | B
symbolic boundaries
B China B Religion B Chineseness B National Identity |
| Accès en ligne: |
Volltext (Resolving-System) Volltext (doi) |
| Résumé: | For citizens of many countries around the world, religion is a necessary-though often contested-component of their national identity. From the vantage point of the symbolic boundaries approach, we argue that the Chinese government and various other social actors are in contestation to define "Chineseness" in religious terms. Using data from the 2007 Spiritual Life Study of Chinese Residents, this study explores the extent to which religion functions as a constitutive part of Chinese national identity. We find that the effectiveness of the Chinese government's demarcation of the symbolic boundaries around Chineseness related to religion varies across religious groups. Believers of each religion are likely to be strong advocates for their own religion's connection to Chinese national identity. Among the religions, traditional Chinese religions tend to demonstrate a stronger affinity with one another than with Christianity. Daoists are a particularly strong contestant in aligning Daoism with Chineseness, to the extent that they discredit the other religions' suitability for the Chinese. We discuss the implications of these findings and point out directions for future research. |
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| ISSN: | 1468-5906 |
| Contient: | Enthalten in: Journal for the scientific study of religion
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1111/jssr.12519 |