| This dissertation focuses upon contemporary diasporic Chinese women writers and their disparate ways of writing diaspora. Ever since the 1970s, the criticism of Chinese diasporic literature has undergone numerous contentions and changes, and finally manages to plant a colony of its own. Against the background of globalization, post-colonialism and Orientalism, it is built upon the justification and legitimatization of the identity politics---be it the search for ethnicity, or the interest in ethnicity, class, gender and sexuality---from the perspective of diaspora. The examination of diasporic Chinese women writers' works are contained in such an intrinsic pattern. My project takes departure from here, and makes efforts to extend the discussion by introducing the external forces that may affect the evaluation and representation of the original works by diasporic Chinese women writers, such as translation, publishing services, and marketing. I argue that in examining the literature of diasporic Chinese women writers, we should also include a careful comparative reading of its different versions as the works travel from the diasporic space to the home nation, from Chinese language to English translation, or from literature to movie. My critical analysis of texts by Hualing Nieh, Hong Ying, Geling Yan, Sui Sin Far and Lisa See showcases the resilient and constant negotiations of the diasporic Chinese women writers with the smothering forces between the two worlds. |
