Smoking and Patriotism: A Study of the Nanyang Brothers Tobacco Company’s Advertisements on Lat Pau During the May Fourth Movement Period
Author: Lo-Fen I(Division of Chinese,Nanyang Technological University Singapore)
Vol.&No.：Vol. 54, No. 2
Date：September 2009
Pages：65-106
DOI：10.3966/207451922009095402004
Abstract：
Lat Pau, the first ever locally established Chinese paper in Singapore, was set up in 1881 and its distributions were terminated in 1932. Its name “Lat Pau” was derived from the word “Selat” (Malay for “Straits”), which was another name for Singapore used in earlier times.On the other hand, the Nanyang Brothers Tobacco Company was established in the early 20th century and was once the largest Chinese-owned tobacco company in China. In 1916, a branch of the company was set up in Singapore. They started their from page advertising on Lat Pau in the subsequent year, which lasted until mid-august in 1921. Thereafter, the advertisements were transferred to the other pages of the paper. These changes took place just as the May Fourth Movement occurred in China.This paper aims to study the advertisements that were published on Lat Pau by the Nanyang Brothers Tobacco Company between 1917 and 1921. Based on visual culture, the language, images and marketing strategies adopted in the advertisements will be analyzed, in attempt to elucidate the ways in which nationalistic sentiments and patriotism imfluence consumer behaviour.The study has observed three characteristics of the advertisements, namely the display of partiotism, the dissemination of classic poetry and prose, and the creation of an affective appeal for the homeland. Together with slogans such as “Chinese cigarettes for Chinese,” the advertising created an exceptionally high sales performance. The success was, however, short-lived, following the civil strife and anti-Japanese war that broke out in China. Set in such tumultuous times, the correlation between smoking and patriotism faced doubts and challenges. As such, it can be said that the period during which the May Fourth Movement occurred was a golden age that was never to return for the Nanyang Brothers Tobacco Company.
Keywords：Tobacco, Lat Pau, May Fourth Movement, Nanyang Brothers Tobacco Company, Advertisement
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