The Philosophy of Ang Lee

by Robert Arp (Editor), Adam Barkman (Editor), James McRae (Editor)

Overview

Ang Lee (b. 1954) has emerged as one of cinema's most versatile, critically acclaimed, and popular directors. Known for his ability to transcend cultural and stylistic boundaries, Lee has built a diverse oeuvre that includes films about culture clashes and globalization (Eat Drink Man Woman, 1994, and The Wedding Banquet, 1993), a period drama (Sense and Sensibility, 1995), a martial arts epic (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, 2000), a comic book action movie (Hulk, 2003), and an American western

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780813141664
Publisher:	University Press of Kentucky
Publication date:	05/01/2013
Series:	The Philosophy of Popular Culture
Pages:	312
Product dimensions:	6.30(w) x 9.10(h) x 1.10(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Robert Arp is the editor of South Park and Philosophy and coeditor of Philosophy of Biology. Adam Barkman is associate professor of philosophy at Redeemer University College and is cross-appointed at Yonsei University in South Korea. He is the author of C. S. Lewis and Philosophy as a Way of Life and coeditor of Manga and Philosophy. James McRae is associate professor of Asian philosophy and religion and coordinator for Asian studies at Westminster College. He is coeditor of Environmental Philosophy in the Asian Traditions of Thought.

Table of Contents

Introduction Robert Arp Adam Barkman James McRae 1

Part 1 The Eastern Philosophy of Ang Lee

Conquering the Self: Daoism, Confucianism, and the Price of Freedom in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon James McRae 19

What Do You Know of My Heart? The Role of Sense and Sensibility in Ang Lee's Sense and Sensibility and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon Renée Köhler-Ryan Sydney Palmer 41

The Confucian Cowboy Aesthetic Michael Thompson 64

East Meets Western: The Eastern Philosophy of Ang Lee's Brokeback Mountain Jeff Bush 77

Landscape and Gender in Ang Lee's Sense and Sensibility and Brokeback Mountain Misty Jameson Patricia Brace 95

Can't Get No Satisfaction: Desires, Rituals, and the Search for Harmony in Eat Drink Man Woman Carl J. Dull 121

Paternalism, Virtue Ethics, and Ang Lee: Does Father Really Know Best? Ronda Lee Roberts 141

Lust, Caution: A Case for Perception, Unimpeded Basileios Kroustallis 151

Part 2 The Western Philosophy of Aug Lee

The Power to Go beyond Gods Boundaries? Hulk, Human Nature, and Some Ethical Concerns Thereof Adam Barkman 165

Displacement, Deception, and Disorder: Ang Lees Discourse of Identity Timothy M. Dale Joseph J. Foy 177

Subverting Heroic Violence: Ang Lee's Taking Woodstock ana1 Hulk as Antiwar Narratives David Zietsma 192

Homo Migrans: Desexualization in Ang Lee's Taking Woodstock Nancy Kang 210

Because of the Molecules: The Ice Storm and the Philosophy of Love and Recognition Susanne Schmetkamp 230

It's Existential: Negative Space and Nothingness in The Ice Storm David Koepsell 243

The Ice Storm: What Is Impending? George T. Hole 251

Alls Fair in Love and War? Machiavelli and Ang Lee's Ride with the Devil James Edwin Mahon 265

Acknowledgments 291

Glossary of Chinese Terms 293

List of Contributors 295

Index 299

Editorial Reviews

The most exciting aspect of this research is its fresh discovery of Lee's art and the way that it illuminates his films with truly original philosophical interpretations. The Philosophy of Ang Lee excels in its discussion of Lee's work, and it is a valuable addition to the body of scholarship on his films.

author of The Cinema of Ang Lee Whitney Crothers Dilley

This collection is significant and necessary for understanding the work of the popular filmmaker.

coeditor of Star Trek and Philosophy Kevin Decker

"This collection is significant and necessary for understanding the work of the popular filmmaker." — Kevin Decker, coeditor of Star Trek and Philosophy

"The most exciting aspect of this research is its fresh discovery of Lee's art and the way that it illuminates his films with truly original philosophical interpretations. The Philosophy of Ang Lee excels in its discussion of Lee's work, and it is a valuable addition to the body of scholarship on his films." — Whitney Crothers Dilley, author of The Cinema of Ang Lee

From the Publisher