The Yellow Peril

The Yellow Peril: Dr Fu Manchu & The Rise of Chinaphobia | Christopher Frayling

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As I finished this book, The Specials' "Do Nothing" came up on my play list, its refrain of "Nothing ever change" feeling remarkably apposite to the theme of this book: The racist attitudes of late Victorian and Edwardian Western popular culture were fostered by political and economic interests to justify colonialism and exploitation, and this sadly still pertains.
It's an enlightening blend of history, biography and filmography; informative, ⬇️

Bookwomble ... detailed but never dry. The end did seem a little rushed though, which is a slight let down as Frayling is an otherwise assured guide. Still a strong 4⭐
As a counter to The Specials' resigned cynicism, I'm playing The Stranglers' bombastically defiant, "Something Better Change" ?✊? 1y

thebackyardgnome Aounds great! 1y

Bookwomble @thebackyardgnome It is! 😁 1y

Bookwomble #BooksAndMusic 1y

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Bookwomble

The Yellow Peril: Dr Fu Manchu & The Rise of Chinaphobia | Christopher Frayling

"HOW UNDESIRABLES ENTER ENGLAND: Clandestinely, by ship, without permission!"

Pop Quiz!
Is this newspaper headline about "The Immigrant Problem" from 1911 or 2023? ?

It appears the Tories and their media backers have a favourite scapegoat to trot out when they need a diversion from their disastrous handling of government ?

TrishB 😡 1y

Bookwomble @TrishB The more I learn about Churchill (and by extension his modern day doppelganger-biographer, BJ) the more I despise him (and him, too). 1y

TrishB Same. But he‘ll always have won the war…. 1y

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Bookwomble @TrishB Well, he did say he'd write that into history, so it must be true!✌️(I know your comment is sarcasm 🫠) That our grandparents voted him out in the election immediately after the war is telling, though. 1y

TrishB Also written quietly out of history. And the modern day wannabe will never go quietly. 1y

bibliothecarivs Here in the US, Churchill is definitely regarded as a righteous hero. Perhaps a little quirky, but decent and good. An affable English gentleman and grandfather who told the Nazis to fuck off. It's only recently that some of us are beginning to see a more complicated picture. His racism is never mentioned. Speaking of the '45 general election, I'm on the hunt for a good Attlee biography. Any recommendations? 1y

Bookwomble @bibliothecarivs He's generally fêted in the UK, too. He's probably a somewhat less divisive figure than Margret Thatcher thanks to the rosy glow of nostalgia and earrings myth-making. On the Clement Atlee front, I draw a blank, I'm afraid 🙂 1y

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Bookwomble

The Yellow Peril: Dr Fu Manchu & The Rise of Chinaphobia | Christopher Frayling

"I thought it better to let the house burn than spend good English lives in rescuing those ferocious rascals."

Then Home Secretary, Winston Churchill, on his decision at the 1911 "Siege of Sidney Street" to prevent firefighters rescuing Latvian exiles alleged to be Bolshevik anarchists involved in a police killing. All who escaped were acquitted at trial, only those burnt to death being found guilty, conveniently justifying Churchill's decision.

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Bookwomble

The Yellow Peril: Dr Fu Manchu & The Rise of Chinaphobia | Christopher Frayling

I struggled to think of a #GuiltyPleasure book for #TitlesAndTunes, then saw this book waiting for me to read, which I totally bought to salve my guilty conscience for enjoying the Fu Manchu stories of Sax Rohmer. So, this book isn't my guilty pleasure, but I will read this deconstruction of Western popular culture's racist fascination with The Orient so that I can "ironically" read a Fu Manchu afterwards, when I will post a matching tune ? ⬇️

Bookwomble Written in 2014, Frayling just missed Trump's "Chynah Virus" bullshit, but it will still be interesting to read in that context.
Apologies for the headache-inducing carpet pattern ? I'm at my parent's house! 1y

The_Book_Ninja Never read a Fu Manchu but I remember I saw a Christopher Lee film that creeped me out when I was a kid. I‘ve seen the books many times in 2nd hand bookshops 1y

Bookwomble @The_Book_Ninja They're typical pulp adventure stories of the time, I guess, but (and it's a big but!) leaving the dodgy geopolitics and white supremacism aside, they're fun adventure thrillers. 1y

The_Book_Ninja I see you can pick them up cheap. I may give the first one a bash. I know what you mean about the “but” though. I‘m reading HP Lovecraft for the first time, enjoying his wordsmithery but Jeez, what a rank racist. 1y

Bookwomble @The_Book_Ninja AHH, HPL ? Even his own friends were like, "Ooh, turn it down a bit, mate." He did later in his relatively short life accept that his racist attitudes were based on ignorance and prejudice. 1y

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