本文企圖探討由上一個世紀之交的「國族新衣」到這一個世紀之交的「帝國新衣」之歷史演變與權力重組。全文將分成三個部份來進行，第一部份著重於近現代解殖民運動中「國族新衣」的出現，將分別以二十世紀初印度的「卡地土布」與中國的「中山裝」為例，說明「西裝」作為西方帝國主義新衣與「卡地土布」、「中山裝」作為印、中國族新衣間的意識形態頡頏，以及彼時國族新衣從日常生活實踐到國際形象的龐大民族主義動員力。第二部份則將前一部份循西方帝國殖民主義與國族服飾歷史糾葛的討論軸線，拉至今日的全球化時代，以ＡＰＥＣ非正式領袖高峰會的「服裝秀」為主要分析對象，比較二十世紀國族服裝作為一種「政治對立」的符／服碼與二十一世紀國族服裝作為一種「文化多樣性」的櫥窗展示，在歷史脈絡、身體政治與權力部署上的差異。第三部份則將前兩部份有關「國族新衣」到「帝國新衣」的討論，直接扣連到台灣當前有關「台灣衫」的政治文化爭議，以「台灣衫」作為實際正在發生、擁有在地歷史文化殊異性的具體案例，印證且挑戰前兩部份所發展出來的通論架構。此部份將針對「台灣衫」的爭議，同時進行政治化與歷史化的脈絡解讀，不僅將追溯「台灣衫」一詞在台灣日據時代的出現與演變，也將進一步探討「台灣衫」同時作為「國族新衣」與「帝國新衣」在當前全球化論述中的諸多「不可能」。

This paper attempts to explore the historical connection and power complication between the emergence of “the nation’s new clothes” at the turn of last century and the appearance of “the Empire’s new clothes” at the turn of this century. It is divided into three parts. Part I focuses on the political fabrication of “the national dress” by taking the Indian khadi and the Chinese Chung-San suits as two major examples of sartorial decolonization in the process of nation-building. It will map out the ideological confrontation between the Western suits as “new clothes of Imperialism” and khadi and Chung-San suits as “new clothes of nationalism,” highlighting the latter’s powerful appeal from everyday local practice to international circulation of images. Part II will take Michael Hardt and Antonio Negri’s Empire as frame of reference to explore the possible formation of “the Empire’s new clothes” in the era of globalization by taking the summit fashion show of APEC as the major target. It will compare and contrast the national dress of the twentieth century as a sign of political opposition and the “national dress” of the twenty-first century as a window display of cultural diversity by delineating their differences in terms of historical context, body politics and power deployment. Part III will shift the focus back to the current debate on “Taiwan Shan” by contextualizing the issue in local politics and history. It will trace the emergence of “Taiwan Shan” as a sartorial naming in Taiwan for the purpose of differentiation under Japanese colonization. It will also argue why the design and promotion of “Taiwan Shan” in the present discourse of globalization as the new clothes of both the nation and the empire makes itself a (post) national mission impossible.