Yang, Yi;
(2023)
Constructing Authenticity and Embodying Tradition in a Globalising Medicine: A History of Five-Element Acupuncture (五行针灸, Wûxíng Zhēnjiū).
Doctoral thesis (Ph.D), UCL (University College London).
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Abstract
Five–Element Acupuncture (FEA) is a European style of ‘Chinese medicine’ originally inaugurated by a British physiotherapist, Jack Worsley, in the 1970s. It was subsequently developed as 'authentic' Chinese acupuncture and popularised by many of his followers, for whom what they imagined to be traditional Chinese medicine became part of questioning and challenging what they saw as a fundamentally Eurocentric industrialised science and rationalism. Four decades later, in the 2010s, this style of acupuncture was introduced to China by a student of Worsley’s (Nora Franglen), with the help of a Dutch–based Chinese acupuncturist (Long Mei) and a leading figure and advocate of 'traditional' styles of Chinese medicine (Liu Lihong) that were flourishing in mainland China around the same time. FEA has drawn increasing attention from Chinese acupuncturists, where the label of 'authenticity' has played a significant role in its popularity as a traditional yet globalising medicine. My research therefore aims to answer the following question: how and why did this style of acupuncture, which originated in Europe and North America, come to be constructed and legitimised as authentic acupuncture in both late 20th century Britain and contemporary China? This study uses primary sources of oral history interviews and digital archives to answer the following sub-questions: a. How and why did Worsley and his followers construct FEA as authentic Chinese medicine in late 20th century Britain? b. How was ‘authenticity’ challenged and negotiated between FEA and Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) from China in the process of professionalising acupuncture in Britain? and c. What tensions are revealed by the ‘(re)–importation’ of this allegedly ‘authentic’ tradition from Europe to mainland China? Drawing on methods and theories from history, anthropology, science and technology studies and cultural studies, I examine how a range of socio–cultural factors, in particular a counterculture movement in both New Age Britain and post–Deng China, contributed to the currency and legitimacy of FEA as an ‘authentic Chinese acupuncture’ in 1970–80s England and contemporary China.
| Type: | Thesis (Doctoral) |
|---|---|
| Qualification: | Ph.D |
| Title: | Constructing Authenticity and Embodying Tradition in a Globalising Medicine: A History of Five-Element Acupuncture (五行针灸, Wûxíng Zhēnjiū) |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | Copyright © The Author 2022. Original content in this thesis is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0) Licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/). Any third-party copyright material present remains the property of its respective owner(s) and is licensed under its existing terms. Access may initially be restricted at the author’s request. |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH > Faculty of S&HS UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH > Faculty of S&HS > Dept of History |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10180602 |
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