Sister Furong tops the list
Sister Furong (芙蓉姐姐) tops the list of one Chinese internet user’s “Most Disgusting Chinese Women of 2005.” A list we might not pay much attention to if it weren’t for the way that Internet stardom has shaped it. In addition to Sister Furong–for whom a Baidu search reveals 3.8 million results–“Hooligan Swallow” is another Internet star, who comes in at number 10.
ESWN, where the list is translated from the original posts on the Tianya forum, notes:
Thanks to Furong Jiejie, we found out the power of the Internet. We need not say more, but every Chinese netizen knows who she is. It only took several brief months from the several
photographs on the SMTH BBS to the coverage on foreign television programs. Compared to the tens of millions in money spent on the publicity for the movie The Promise, Sister only needed to stage a few poses and click on the mouse a few times.
Oh lord! That photo…
after a long time of being constrained, China has come to enter a period that more and more chinese want to make widely known by other people.
That is the change and i love it!
yes, though Sister FURONG is not beautiful,and the way she exaggerated herself about her appearance has been argued for a long time in china, i still owe my respect to her. Objectivelly, she taught chinese people how to express themselves in a little bit strange way.
Sister Furong…You’re right,this event goes beyond the discussion of her weird self-expression. We see the potential power of the Internet here
Being a non-Asian, can you explain the significance of this particular post relative to Chinese culture? I am not sure what I am to conclude about Chinese internet culture from this.
Jamie — the Sister Furong phenomenon is complex, fascinating, and well documented. Her photos really have to be seen to be believed; and the extent of her impact in the mainstream media took everyone by surprise. So it’s both the content of what she posted that was unusual–she has a unique sense of what is attractive and a very high opinion of her own charms–as well as how she became a national phenomenon seen everywhere. She definitely struck a nerve in China, probably for a number of different reasons.
For more about her, see this piece on Danwei.
Not beautiful? man I would love to have her… In my opinion I think her body is sexy. To me it turns me on badly.