ABSTRACT
The First Emperor (Qin Shihuang, 259-210 BCE, aka, Ying Zheng) and his pursuit of unification of the warring states around the mid-third century BCE has been the subject of dozens of scholarly studies and popular history books published in China. There is a 30-episode television series produced by China’s Central Television in 2002 entitled Qin shihuang. The First Emperor has also been the subject of three major films produced by China’s most prominent film directors, namely: The Emperor’s Shadow (Qin song, 1996) directed by Zhou Xiaowen, The Emperor and the Assassin (Jingke ci Qinwang, 1998) directed by Chen Kaige and Hero directed by Zhang Yimou in 2002. There is no sign of interest waning as the Metropolitan Opera in New York performed First Emperor in 2006. The opera is directed by Zhang Yimou with the New York-based, internationally acclaimed Tan Dun as the music composer, and its premier run was completely sold out.1 What emerges from this constant focus on China’s First Emperor is his changing image from tyrant to hero, running parallel to changes in the sentiments and practices of contemporary nationalism in the People’s Republic of China (PRC).
