재미(在美) 아시아계 가족의 스테레오타입의 변화

Abstract

In this paper, the stereotype changes of Asian families in North America were examined through movies and TV series. In the white-centered American society, prejudice against Asians has been reflected in popular culture for a long time. Until the mid-20th century, American films featuring Asian families are representative of The Good Earth(1937) and Flower Drum Song(1961), adapted from the novels of Pearl S. Buck and Chin Yang Lee. The two films formed a stereotype by focusing on exotically showing the patriarchal-based familial culture. However, since the 1980s, when Asian directors such as Wayne Wang appeared, A Great Wall(1986), Eat a Bowl of Tea(1989), Mississippi Masala(1991), and The Joy Luck Club(1993), focused on the westernized appearance of Asian families and personal lives as in All-American Girl(1994-1995). In the 2000s, when Asian directors and actors fully assimilated into American culture appeared, Saving Face(2004), A Thousand Years of Good Prayers(2007), Dim Sum Funeral(2008), The People I’ve Slept With(2009) ), the story of the Asian family was told from various perspectives. In the 2010s, when the media environment changed, TV series featuring Asian families such as Fresh Off the Boat(2015-2020) and Kim’s Convenience(2016-2021), which are adaptations of the autobiographical stories of descendants of Asian immigrants, were aired. It showed the hybrid culture of westernized Asian families as part of American culture that embraces diversity. As Asian content such as Hallyu became popular in American society, Asian films, such as Crazy Rich Asians(2018), were successful even though they used Asian materials such as high-income conflicts. Films like Go Back to China(2019) and The Farewell(2019), in which children of Asian immigrants visit their parents’ countries, show Asian cities that are more capitalist than the United States, changing the stereotype of Asians.