Publication details
Caricatures of Chiang Kai-shek in Czechoslovak Communist Propaganda (1948-1975)
| Authors | |
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| Year of publication | 2015 |
| Type | Appeared in Conference without Proceedings |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| Description | “Chiang Kai-shek, the so-called president of the so-called Republic of China died…” By these words the biggest Czechoslovakian communist newspaper Rudé právo referred about the death of Chiang Kai-shek in April 1975. The aim of this paper is to provide a media discourse analysis of the official communist propaganda caricatures in Czechoslovak press concerning Chiang Kai-shek in the period 1948-1975. After the Second World War, when Kuomintang had began to lose the Chinese Civil War; Chiang Kai-shek and his inability to gain control in China became a popular part of communist propaganda, caricatures and even common jokes. This paper is mainly based on the most widespread Czechoslovakian newspaper Rudé právo, the official newspaper of Communist Party of Czechoslovakia, and cartoon journals, Dikobraz and Roháč, that belonged among the most popular and read magazines in the country. The study covers the period of communist rule in Czechoslovakia, from February 1948 to the Chiang Kai-shek’s death in April 1975. The emphasis will be laid on the last years of the 1940s before Chiang Kai-shek retreated to Taiwan and the 1950s, when P.R.C. was establishing its international contacts. During this period Czechoslovak public opinion was strongly supportive towards P.R.C. and their common “imperialistic” enemy. In the 1960s and 1970s, there was a decline in international cooperation among P.R.C. and Soviet Bloc, and therefore a decrease in the amount of propaganda caricatures of Chiang Kai-shek, reflecting only significant incidents such as the UN’s recognition of the PRC, and the death of Chiang Kai-shek. The study will examine the presentation of Chiang Kai-shek; his stereotypes within the cartoon imagines and what information were or were not presented to the Czechoslovakian public. |