American Research in the Humanities in China 2011
Associate Professor
Anthropology
University of South Carolina
Weiqi Nation: Chinese Masculinities and Constructions of a Nostalgic Modernity

This project examines the board game Weiqi and constructions of masculinity in Beijing, China. It explores three overlapping themes. The first is constructions of masculinity through playing the game; this focus represents a significant paradigm shift for Chinese gender studies, which tends to focus on sexuality or physical prowess as a means of examining masculinity. Second, the project explores the ways in which Weiqi players evoke the historical associations of the game as an elite and gentlemanly past time. Third, it examines the ways in which Weiqi becomes an emblem of national pride as China has slowly reclaimed supremacy of the game in East Asia.