LNELecture Notes in Education, Arts, Management and Social ScienceTBA2705-053XWHIOCE PUBLISHING PTE. LTD.10.18063/LNE.v4i3.1828ArticleA Study of the Carnival Features of Harbin Ice and Snow World from the Perspective of Bakhtin’s Carnival Theoryhttps://artdesignp.com/journal/LNE/4/3/10.18063/LNE.v4i3.1828LiHanqi2026432026-03-26Harbin Ice and Snow World is often described as a tourist attraction, a winter festival site, or a successful city brand. These descriptions record what the site looks like and how popular it has become, yet they do not explain why this place generates such intense collective emotion, why it shortens social distance, or why visitors so readily enter its mood of performance and release themselves. This paper uses Mikhail Bakhtin’s carnival theory to examine Harbin Ice and Snow World as a cultural space rather than a simple scenic spot. It argues that the park creates a temporary “carnivalized” environment through four connected mechanisms: spatial estrangement, partial suspension of hierarchy, symbolic exaggeration, and collective emotional participation. At the same time, this paper does not romanticize the site. Harbin Ice and Snow World is not a pure carnival in the Bakhtinian sense. Its freedom is organized, its participation is guided, and its apparent equality remains tied to commercial tourism. Even so, carnival theory still explains its force better than ordinary branding language or tourism statistics. In this sense, Harbin Ice and Snow World should be read not merely as a winter park but as a managed carnival space where collective pleasure, cultural display, and economic design meet.Carnival theory, Harbin Ice and Snow World, Bakhtin, Ice and snow culture, Cultural tourism

[1] Andrews H, 2023, Tourists and the Carnivalesque: Partying in the Land of Cockaigne. Journal of Festive Studies, 5(1): 167–189. [2] Zhou QC, 2018, The Journey of Bakhtin’s Core Literary Discourse in China: Retrospect and Reflection. Journal of Graduate School of Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, (1): 64–71. [3] Wang XY, 2011, The Democratic Implications of Bakhtin’s Concept of Carnival: Reflections from the Theoretical Dilemma of Critical Discourse Analysis. Mass Communication Research, (7): 183–223. [4] Zeng YN, 2001, Carnival Theory and the Development of Comedy Films. Journal of Beijing Technology and Business University, (1): 74–76. [5] Chen Y, 2007, Carnival Theory and Film Narrative. Journal of Renmin University of China, (3): 147–153. [6] Li JX, 2024, A Study on the Brand Image Construction of ‘Ice and Snow Culture’ in Harbin Ice and Snow World. Journal of News and Communication Science, (6): 1396–1400. [7] Liu LW, Tao LX, 2021, Research on Tourism Carrying Capacity of Ice-Snow Cultural Cities Based on the Matter-Element Model. Sustainable Development, (5): 607–617. [8] Bi KX, Wang MS, 2024, A Study on High-Quality Development Strategies of Ice and Snow Tourism in Harbin. Sustainable Development, (8): 1396–1400. [9] Eweis MA, 2021, Origins of Bakhtin’s Theory of Carnivalization. International Journal of Humanities & Social Sciences, (1): 9–35. [10] Lachmann R, Eshelman R, Davis M, 1988, Bakhtin and Carnival: Culture as Counter-Culture. Cultural Critique, (11): 115–152. [11] Li B, 2017, The Dialogic Approach in Translation Studies: Bakhtinian Thought and Translation Research. China Social Sciences Press, Beijing. [12] Cheng ZM, 2017, A Study of Bakhtin’s Cultural Poetics. China Social Sciences Press, Beijing. [13] Orji BE, 2019, Carnivalization of Indigenous Performance Forms & the Demystification of Ritual Essence in Costume & Mask Designs of Masquerade Art. African Theatre, (18): 42–62. [14] Crichlow MA, Armstrong P, 2010, Carnival Praxis, Carnivalesque Strategies and Atlantic Interstices. Social Identities, 16(4): 399–414. [15] Zeng J, 2004, Polyphony of Reception: A Study of the Reception of Bakhtin in China. Guangxi Normal University Press, Guangxi. [16] Qian ZW, 2009, The Complete Works of Bakhtin, Vol. 3. Hebei Education Press, Hebei. [17] Sherfudeen C, 2024, An Image Journey into Carnivalesque and Representation: The Case of the Postcolonial Indian Mainstream Narrative. Advances in Literary Study, (12): 353–368.