Poster Session
Piano Fever in China: Hobby, Passion, or Meritocracy?
Poster Session Shichang Chen
This research investigates the differing perceptions of the piano between children and parents in China's middle and upper classes. The number of piano students in China has grown dramatically from the 1980s to the 2010s, indicating a deep-rooted and expanding piano culture. This phenomenon, initially referred to as the "piano craze (钢琴热)" by Chinese media in the 1990s, continues to flourish, serving as a reflection of Chinese social development. Rapid growth in China in recent decades has surely changed people's lives and opinions about everyday life. Learning the piano has become a prevalent phenomenon in China rather than a privilege. Parental pressure has led many youths to choose the piano as their first instrument. Pianos now symbolize accomplishment. The society seems to value children from a more meritocratic perspective. It has become the standard for middle-class kids, just like learning English. Instead of enjoying music, how much the children put in effort is a more important factor. Moreover, this dynamic can strain the relationship between parents and children, as it consumes their free time without their consent, reducing opportunities for them to explore their interests and act on their behalf. In light of this phenomenon, the research explores the significance of the piano in the homes of middle- and upper-class Chinese families, as well as the distinctions between parents and children, through the use of narrative analysis and interviews to clarify the social transformations that have occurred in contemporary Chinese societies.
Fight, Flight, or Freeze: Antigone and the Beirut Port Explosion
Poster Session Luke Reynolds
This study examines the intersection of classical tragedy and modern trauma through a comparative analysis of Sophocles’ Antigone and the 2020 Beirut Port explosion. Using the psychological framework of fight, flight, and freeze trauma responses, I argue that the behavior of the Chorus in Antigone reflects a pattern of collective paralysis that still resonates in contemporary sociopolitical contexts. In contrast, the Lebanese public’s response to the explosion—initial silence, followed by mass protest and civic mobilization—illustrates a shift from paralysis to resistance, reshaping the tragic narrative arc. Drawing on neurological research on crowd behavior, trauma studies, and cultural history, I analyze how each group (the Theban Chorus and the Lebanese public) navigates moral responsibility, witnesshood, and agency under pressure. By comparing these moments of civic crisis, I explore how literature can help illuminate, complicate, and reframe our understanding of national grief and public response. Ultimately, this research proposes that tragedy does not merely depict suffering—it offers models for how societies confront it. In contrasting a classical “freeze” with a modern “fight,” I suggest that communal storytelling is not only reflective but directive: a mechanism through which cultural memory is processed, and collective will is forged.
