RUIZHI LIU

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BEYOND SMOKE Cigarettes are more than just objects of consumption—they are tied to histories of colonial exploitation, capitalist expansion, gender identity, and even debates on freedom and regulation. For me, who has never smoked, the question became unavoidable: why does such a small object carry so much symbolic weight in modern culture?

In this paper, I trace tobacco’s colonial past, examine how Marlboro advertising shifted between femininity and masculinity, and reflect on the philosophical debate between individual choice and state control. Through this, I attempt to look beyond the smoke itself, to see cigarettes as a mirror of power, culture, and society.

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