Ver o céu, ler a terra: cidades chinesas e ficções (científicas) em tradução

Abstract

The dissertation develops a relationship between the expanded field of architecture and literature, more specifically, Science Fiction (SF) stories produced in the 21st century in China, in order to understand the spatial dynamics of that country. In this sense, I use Walter Benjamin's nebula method with an analysis of Henri Lefebvre's production of space and Hui Yuk's technodiversity. Drawing on my experience during the eleven-month internship in China as part of my doctoral program, I incorporate travelogues as guiding threads for the section discussions. The critical argument is organized in the framework part, which is divided into three sections: the first on written translation, from one language to another, but also translation from one medium to another, such as from a drawing to a building; then, I move on to an investigation of technology and modernity in China, a matter of the moment given the country's growing global relevance; and the history of Chinese Science Fiction and the rise of new styles in contemporary China. Next, in the investigative part, I use contemporary Science Fiction as a springboard for analyzing Chinese architecture and art. I begin with the socio-spatial inequalities that still exist in China, drawing on Hao Jingfang's (2016) SF short story "Folding Beijing"; then I move on to the climate emergency, using Gu Shi's "City of Choice" (2023) and Liu Cixin's "Moolight" (2019); finally, I discuss the preservation of diverse traditions amid a globalized and homogenizing world, through Wang Nuonuo's "The Way Spring Arrives" (2022) and Ling Chen's "The Name of the Dragon" (2022). This justification is built on the growth of diplomatic relations between Brazil and China, and for an expansion in the field of architecture, both in relation to Chinese architecture and in the exchange between construction and writing.