Abstract Li Ang’s paranormal trilogy— Visible Ghosts , Possession , and The River Woman Beyond —employs ghostly narratives to stage the intersection of historical trauma, gendered violence, and ethical reckoning. Drawing on Jacques Derrida’s hauntology and Judith Butler’s theory of grievability, this article argues that the ghost in Li Ang’s fiction functions not merely as a motif but as a structural condition of perception and narration. Across the trilogy, spectrality becomes the medium through which histories are re-entered, not to restore coherence but to expose absence, injury, and unresolved memory. Li Ang does not simply represent the paranormal; she inhabits it. Through increasingly self-referential writing, she stages haunting as a feminist modality of critique and redemption. The paranormal, in this context, is neither superstition nor metaphor—it is the very terrain through which the unspeakable is rendered thinkable, and the unreadable, legible.
This study qualitatively analyses Taiwan-based cultural and creative entrepreneurs’ responses to changes during the specific conjuncture of the early 2020s, and the significance of their experiences and business strategies to sustain their companies. While some encountered significant difficulties during this time, others have capitalised on the expansion of e-commerce during the Covid-19 pandemic. The analysis demonstrates the cultural and creative entrepreneurs’ conscious choice to reflect an ethos of ‘change-making’—small-scale, innovative ventures that attempt to engender social, cultural, and ecological values—contributing to discussions of corporate responsibilities and sustainability. Given the pandemic and the fluctuations in Taiwan’s international trades in recent years, interests in exploring alternative production structures, representing the island’s unique culture and creativity, and foregrounding sustainability through green and environmentally friendly production processes represent the will of this generation of creative entrepreneurs to effect cultural change in times of social and economic challenges.
At the end of World War II in 1945 there were approximately 2,200 Korean civilians living in Taiwan. While the majority returned to Korea, about 300 stayed behind. This group was later joined by others who fled mainland China or arrived from elsewhere, collectively forming a distinct community in post-war Taiwan, known as hanqiao . Today their presence is largely forgotten. This article uses Republic of China government archives and personal interviews to construct a narrative of hanqiao in early post-war Taiwan (1945–1970), including internal power struggles within the Korean Association, economic challenges, and social marginalisation. It also examines processes of decolonisation—specifically, ‘de-Japanisation’—and nationalisation, focusing on how Korean residents in Taiwan formed a distinct Korean identity during the post-war period through their everyday lives, particularly within the ethno-spaces of the Korean school and the church.
Despite widespread evidence for inadvertent promotions of ageism in visual media, few scholarly works have considered the role of English language teaching materials in this matter. This research responded by subjecting a corpus of 1,705 images of people garnered from 28 recent volumes of English learning magazines used in Taiwan’s schools to a critical content analysis. The goal was to determine the amount and manner of representation of older adults. Results indicated that portrayals of those rated 65 and older were attenuated to near invisibility in these materials. Furthermore, when such portrayals were evidenced, they were heavily imbued with stereotypes. Photos accompanying the many English dialogues depicted few participants rated over 50, dissociating older people from legitimacy as foreign language learners, speakers, and teachers. This research is important in documenting a hidden curriculum representing a disconnect between what is implicitly taught and explicit Taiwan government policy aimed at empowering older people.
In the past 400 years of Taiwan history several kinds of writing systems have been adopted in an attempt to transcribe Formosan languages, including romanisations, Chinese characters, Japanese syllabaries, and even Mandarin phonetic symbols. However, it was not until 2005 that a formal writing system based on romanisations was officially promulgated. It is advocated that romanisations is the best kind of orthography for these languages. Since 2016 several public hearings have been held by Indigenous Language Research and Development Centre, where representatives of each ethnic group discuss this matter with Formosan linguists. This article reviews the problems about the use of certain letters and symbols from a linguistic perspective. It also proposes to implement orthographic standardisation, which is intended to serve as advice for language policies on orthography.
A major obstacle to revitalising the indigenous languages of Taiwan is the lack of effective teaching approaches for these languages given the social, political, and linguistic context. The purpose of this article is to explore the effectiveness of an unconventional language teaching method, the `Silent Way, in elementary Truku Seediq classes. In the Silent Way approach, teachers rarely speak but use problem-solving activities to create opportunities for learners to utilise diverse cognitive strategies and engage their perceptual and analytical powers; learners are expected to become independent problem-solvers in the target language. Based on video-recorded data of eight weeks of one-on-one classes, this article assesses two learners' language development both quantitatively (using the mean length of utterance) and qualitatively (using teacher reflections and the researcher's class observations via video). The results suggest that this problem-solving approach has unique advantages for indigenous language teaching in the multilingual context of Taiwan.
How do established states conduct relations with contested peers? This article examines US-Taiwan diplomatic relations from 1979 to 2021 to determine the political factors that most affect adjustments to unofficial diplomacy. I build off existing scholarship on US-Taiwan relations as well as general theory on sovereignty and diplomacy to introduce the idea of unofficial diplomacy (diplomatic ties and activities) within which to examine the US-Taiwan relationship. I then use interviews with 11 American and Taiwanese diplomats to find that two conceptual factors (Taiwanese governmental actions and policies, and US circumstantial, non-Taiwan interests) are the most influential on changes to the rules and regulations governing US-Taiwan diplomacy in its current, unofficial form. These findings add further nuance to scholarship on US-Taiwan relations and offer insight into how an established state conducts and maintains unofficial diplomacy with an unrecognised partner.
Taiwan officially legalised same-sex marriage in 2019. However, this milestone was preceded by a 2018 referendum in which the majority opposed the reform, revealing a puzzling shift in public attitudes during the preceding years that is corroborated by opinion poll data. This study seeks to explain that shift by analysing the role of party preference and digital media use in shaping voter behaviour within a politically polarised environment dominated by anti–same-sex marriage discourse. It finds that voters most inclined to oppose same-sex marriage were pan-blue camp supporters active in online communities as frequent posters and independent voters who regularly consumed political content online. Notably, among independent voters, those who engaged in frequent online fact-checking were more likely to support same-sex marriage, suggesting that critical engagement with digital media can counter the effects of polarising narratives. The findings underscore the influence of digital media on public opinion and highlight the pivotal yet often overlooked role of independent voters in referendums.
Te Kōhanga Reo, a pioneering initiative in New Zealand aimed at revitalising endangered Indigenous languages, has inspired similar efforts worldwide, including in Taiwan. This study delves into the nuances of language nests by comparing the success of Te Kōhanga Reo among the Māori people and three Kōhanga Reo-inspired programmes in Taiwan. The research reveals that the Taiwanese programmes often lack community involvement and are primarily guided by top-down policy with little autonomy. Government regulations, focused predominantly on linguistic output and influenced by settler-centric policies, also pose additional challenges for community workers. The comparative analysis highlights critical factors for language nest success: community and familial commitment to language transmission, autonomy in programme implementation, and holistic consideration of language revitalisation within the broader Indigenous community context. Drawing from these findings, we propose tailored strategies for language revitalisation in Taiwan, emphasising the importance of aligning initiatives with local needs and cultural dynamics.
To achieve national recognition, Plains Indigenous people (aka Pingpu) in Taiwan need an ethnolect. The language of one Plains Indigenous group, the Siraya, was extinct for most of the twentieth century. However, one advantage they have over other Plains Indigenous groups seeking national recognition is that much of their language was written down by Dutch missionaries in the seventeenth century with the assistance of their Siraya forefathers. This has allowed Siraya language activists to revitalise their language by producing textbooks, songbooks, and other material for learning and using the language. This article analyses how Siraya language activists have used the Dutch texts to breathe new life into their language. It focuses on two features of the language, phonology and lexis, and examines the choices that the language activists have made, differences between the revitalised language and the language recorded in the Dutch texts resulting from these choices, and possible reasons for these differences.
Taiwan’s Indigenous Language Development Act (2017) was developed by a variety of actors and circumstantial dynamics over more than a decade. But what actors have been involved in both the development and implementation of the Act? This article bridges discussions on Indigenous language policies and policy actors by expanding the traditional notions of democratic representation. It investigates who contributes to the policies that represent the interests of Indigenous groups in Taiwan. Building on existing empirical studies in Taiwan, this article presents initial observations from recent fieldwork in Taiwan and provides preliminary insights and recommendations for future research on political representation and Indigenous language policies in Taiwan and beyond. While a variety of institutional and non-institutional actors are discussed, the article finds that the Council of Indigenous Peoples is the critical actor in Taiwan, playing both a policymaking role and representative role within the realm of Indigenous language policy.
Food plays a significant role in both social lives and the construction of identity. Especially in regard to diasporic communities, food brings with it not just memories and traditions but also culinary practices. The act of cooking, serving, and consuming traditional foods becomes a powerful means of preserving cultural identity in a new society. Based on findings from ethnographic fieldwork conducted in Taiwan in early 2024, this article explores the intricate relationship between food, identity, and the representation of the Tibetan diasporic community in Taiwan. Focusing on Tibetan restaurants in Taiwan, it highlights how the culinary practices of ethnic businesses play a critical role in maintaining cultural heritage and negotiating identity.
While a growing literature tackles institutional trust in democracies, the extent to which partisanship, performance evaluations, and generalised social trust influence this trust remains poorly understood. Against this backdrop, Taiwan, a third-wave democracy, faces many of the same challenges of declining trust, as well as the potential lingering influences of authoritarian nostalgia influencing views on institutions and democracy more broadly. Through an original national survey in May–June 2023, we parse out the factors influencing trust in the presidency, legislature, courts, national government, local government, and the media. We find mixed evidence of a partisan divergence, with supporters of the ruling party generally more supportive, with stronger evidence of a positive boost associated with social trust and democratic satisfaction.
The term ‘colonial nostalgia’ has been increasingly used in media and academic discussions aligned with Chinese interests to describe activists or politicians advocating for democracy and/or independence in Taiwan and Hong Kong. They are described as ‘traitors’ harbouring affection for the West or Japan, failing to demonstrate loyalty to their motherland, with the perceived solution to this problem being patriotic education that instils the correct values. This article seeks to understand how China uses the discourse of colonial nostalgia to delegitimise pro-democracy forces in Taiwan and Hong Kong. By applying content and discourse analysis to a selection of publications from pro-government sources, it highlights the role discourses have played in China’s attempt to counter pro-democracy movements in these regions and how the narrative of colonial nostalgia is used as a tool to delegitimise these movements.
