Lovell, J. The Panaural People’s Republic: Loudness, Loss of Self, and Sonic Social Control in Mao’s China (2023) Annali di Ca Foscari Serie Orientale, 59, pp. 43-70.
DOI: 10.30687/ANNOR/2385-3042/2023/02/002
Abstract
Perspectives on the establishment of social control have long been shaped by theories concerning visibility and observation, such as Foucault’s concept of the Panopticon. In Mao era China, however, sound and hearing had a greater impact on citizens becoming self-disciplined. Reflecting on a variety of sources, with a particular focus on memoirs, this article details how the Mao era soundscape helped to fashion a new form of disciplinary society. This disciplinary society was chaotic, however, and sites of resistance remained, in which some individuals fought to retain their sense of self, even amid all the tumult and violence. © 2023 Lovell.
Author Keywords
China; Loudspeaker; Noise; Radio; Sound; Soundscape
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