The memory of the Nanjing Massacre, a cornerstone of Chinese identity, has been debated around the ‘nationalism vs cosmopolitanism’, ‘victimhood vs victory’, and ‘state discourse vs local agency’ theses. Which theses stand out in China today, and why? What factors shape Chinese historical memories? By studying a state memorial and a civilian memorial on the Nanjing Massacre, this research argues that 1) the increasing visibility of the victory discourse has not undermined the ‘nationalism–victimhood’ nexus, 2) the state memorial, surprisingly, exhibits greater agency and more cosmopolitan elements, and 3) the civilian museum shows less agency than expected, and all the above can be explained by the organizational mechanisms of ‘legitimacy appropriation’ and ‘resource acquisition’. Based on these findings, this study calls for an epistemological shift: memories are not only ‘representations’ but also products of organizations. This study contributes to Chinese memory studies by demystifying the memory production process and extending beyond traditional discourse analysis.

Licheng Qian received his PhD from the University of Virginia and is currently a Lecturer in Sociology at Birmingham City University. Previously, he taught as an Assistant Professor at Zhejiang University and the University of Macau. His research interests lie at the intersection of culture, politics, and collective memory, including the study of national, transnational, and postcolonial identities. His articles have appeared in both social science and China studies journals such as the Journal of Contemporary China, Nations and Nationalism, Cultural Sociology, and Memory Studies. He also serves as a council member of the British Association for Chinese Studies.