Author(s)

Jiaqi Huang, Shuang Chen

Corresponding Author

Jiaqi Huang

ABSTRACT

Empathy can aid in transcultural communication and is required when telling Chinese stories and developing Chinese narrative systems. This paper analyzes the video text of the documentary “The Reason I Live Here” and concludes that the documentary elicits empathy primarily through the narrative perspective of “seeing the big with the small” and the participation of the “other” in the narrative; it also elicits cognitive and attitudinal empathy through the depiction of public social hotspots and character inner emotions. By depicting public social hotspots and characters' inner emotions, it also evokes cognitive and attitudinal empathy in overseas audiences, promoting the dissemination of Chinese culture and the shaping of the Chinese national image while also achieving transcultural understanding.

KEYWORDS

“the reason i live here”, Narrative perspective, Narrative strategy, Empathy, Transcultural communication