The family model has been central to patterns of social organization and
cultural articulation throughout Chinese history, influencing all facets
of the content and style of Chinese art. With contributors drawn from
the disciplines of art history, anthropology, psychiatry, history, and
literature, this volume explores the Chinese concept of family and its
impact upon artistic production. In essays ranging from the depiction of
children to adult portraiture, through literary constructions of gender
and the psychodynamics of cinema, these authors consider the historical
foundations of the family--both real and ideal--in ancient China,
discuss the perpetuation of this model in later Chinese history and
modern times, and analyze how family paradigms informed and intersected
with art and literature.