Tibet on Fire

John Whalen-Bridge is Associate Professor in the Department of English Language and Literature at National University of Singapore

"Aside from its particular focus on performances and rhetoric-which may interest those already familiar with the self-immolations-Tibet on Fire also serves as a general introduction to the Tibetan self-immolation phenomenon, and provides comprehensive, introductory-level background on Tiber-China history, Tibetan Buddhism, and international politics vis-a-vis the Tibet-China conflict. Tibet on Fire may thus also be of interest to those seeking a general introduction to the self-immolations themselves as well as the Tibet-China conflict in general." (Benjamin Wood, Journal of Global Buddhism, Vol. 17, 2016)

• Preface 1.Introduction: The Tibetan Situation Tibet as Rhetorical Situation Politics, Performance, and Drama Argument and Identification 2.Before Self-Immolation: Western Media and Tibetan Protests, 2008 Charm Offensive: Angry Monks in the Western Press Buddhist Anger as an Anti-Colonial Tradition China Syndrome: The Global Suppression of Tibetan Voices 3.Irreversible Speech Running on Fire: The Act Itself and the Creation of an Image New Media and the Great Firewall of China: Distributing the Act Censorship and Self-Immolation Spreading Like Fire: Act and Agency 4.Making a Scene: Actor, Time, and Place Pointillism and the Paradigmatic Tibetan Self-Immolator Selecting an Origin: How The List Positions the Actor PRC Responses: Lunatics, Puppets, Murderers, and Terrorists 5.Purpose: Politics, Buddhism, and Tibetan Survival Hijacking Religion and Justifying Murder What Self-Immolators Say: Statements of Purpose Democracy, Division, and Dharamsala Dilemmas Tibetan Self-Immolation as Response to Genocide Blood on His Hands? The Dalai Lama's Dilemma Emptiness Also Is Form: Buddhism and Necessary Worldliness 6.External Affairs: The Globalization of China's War on Tibet Soft Power in a Hard World Standing for Something: Solzhenitsyn and the Endtimes of Human Rights Silencing the Dalai Lama: Signs of China's Global War on Free Speech 7.Conclusion: Tibet's Next Incarnation