Cultural Identity And Cosmopolitanism In Chinese American Literature

Identity is a critical issue that has long been a concern of Asian/Chinese Americans in the multiethnic society of the United States.Throughout history Asian Americans have made enormous efforts to integrate themselves into the U.S.society,often feeling forced to choose between their Asian and American roots in order to craft their own unique cultural identity.In response to this struggle and,in particular,to concerns of cultural identity,Asian Americans have often found a voice in the authors and literature of their time.The Asian American movement reached its apex during the cultural changes of the 1960 s and 1970 s,due to new immigration laws and the passage of the Civil Rights Act.As a means of opposing the racial discrimination and inequality they faced,many Asian American communities decided to embrace their particular “Asian American” identity – a choice that was expressed in terms of political solidarity and cultural nationalism,especially within the field of literature.At the same time,multiculturalism emerged as a replacement for the original concept of a “melting pot;” however,this new term still supported the cultural hegemony,to some degree.As a result,many Asian/Chinese American literary texts became preoccupied with the question of cultural identity – a focus that remains in contemporary Chinese American literature to this day.This research project focuses on Maxine Hong Kingston,Amy Tan,and Gish Jen as ideal representatives of contemporary Chinese American literature.Previous literary studies on the writings of Kingston,Tan,and Jen reveal that scholars are still greatly interested in all three writers’ cultural identities.However,the various conclusions these scholars come to lead to the similar thoughts on the question of cultural identity: resistance or accommodation or a combination of both.In order to delve more deeply into questions of cultural identity in Chinese American literature,it may be advantageous to broaden the scope of this research.The concept of globalization provides just such a platform for widening our analysis,in particular in light of diaspora studies and the theoretical framework of transnationalism.To the extent that the definition of cosmopolitanism conforms to that of John Tomlinson,the concept of cosmopolitanism is highly recommended,given that both cultural identity and cosmopolitanism both revolve around the same key word “difference.” The development of cosmopolitanism has a long history,originating from ancient Greek philosopher Diogenes of Sinope.Thanks to globalization,cosmopolitanism gradually transforms into a perspective and ideology.Contemporary cosmopolitanism studies have already been popular among various academic disciplines.Since the 1990 s,the academia of literature began to adopt the concept of cosmopolitanism.And many literary studies so far can prove the validity of cosmopolitanism in analyzing literary texts.Therefore,this project takes the shared keyword “difference” as its starting point,using it to reinterpret cultural identity within the literary texts of Kingston,Tan,and Jen from the perspective of cosmopolitanism.Several related research questions are proposed: Is it possible and feasible to answer the question of cultural identity in Chinese American literature studies through the framework of cosmopolitanism? What are the characteristics of their cosmopolitanism? How does the cosmopolitanism revealed in Chinese American literature contribute to the overall development of cosmopolitanism? How does this project contribute to an understanding of cosmopolitanism in Chinese American literary studies and diaspora studies? This project incorporates into its major methodology a comprehensive contextual analysis(historical and personal)for each writer,using these analyses as important supplementary evidence when analyzing their writing in depth.Both contextual and textual analysis have approached each writer and their writing in light of the essence of cosmopolitanism,which is the ability to recognize difference,and to properly deal with difference as well as to possess a sense of common risks and possibilities,and mutual responsibilities.The major arguments in this project focus on the characteristics of each writer’s cosmopolitanism and the reasons for their different concepts of cosmopolitanism.Kingston,Tan,and Jen are analyzed chronologically according to their birth years in chapters one,two,and three.Kingston was born during World War II and grew up as the Vietnam War ongoing.Just as “war” became a keyword in her life,“peace” becomes embedded at the center of her concept of cosmopolitanism.In The Woman Warrior,she has her mother Brave Orchid as role model who is never afraid of difference.On the contrast,her aunt Moon Orchid is the example of failure who is defeated by difference.In China Men,she uses her male relatives as models for embracing difference and contributing positively to U.S.history.In Tripmaster Monkey and The Fifth Book of Peace,she depicts the development of cosmopolitanism in the protagonist Wittman Ah Sing in terms of his perception of difference and attitudes towards difference.The most outstanding feature of Kingston’s concept of cosmopolitanism is revealed when her ideas are finally transferred into a real-life project—a writing workshop for veterans.After the tragic death of Tan’s father and brother,the young woman endured an extremely difficult relationship with her mother,Daisy.Unfortunately,in later life,Tan continued to suffer,with the death of intimate friends.Through “death” and her attempts to repair her relationship with her mother,she gradually constructs her idea of cosmopolitanism,centered on love and life.The Joy Luck Club first demonstrated Tan’s awareness and embracement of globalization,with its cosmopolitan lessons on hope and three different kinds of love—friendship,maternal love,and romantic love.Similarly,The Kitchen God’s Wife demonstrates her awareness of globalization and focuses on the themes of hope and love by telling the stories of different relationships: couples,friends,parents,and children.Saving Fish from Drowning could be regarded as the most mature variation on Tan’s concept of cosmopolitanism.Difference is presented from various levels,through three different forms of relationship—human-human,human-nature,and nation-nation.By showing how differences are overcome thanks to love,Tan presents a wonderful lesson in cosmopolitanism.Jen was born and raised in a middle-class family,with childhood experiences in a Jewish community stimulating her interest in identity.Unlike some second-generation Chinese Americans,Jen is not puzzled by questions of identity;instead,she is fascinated with culture,and cultural differences in particular,distrusting fixed identities and embracing fluid boundaries.Her central topic,and the key to her cosmopolitanism,is in the difference between East(e.g.,China)and West(e.g.,the United States).The characters in Jen’s novels Typical American,Who’s Irish,and World and Town reveal her essential concept of the independent/interdependent self,as well as the foundational cultural difference between East and West.Cosmopolitanism is a theme that runs through all three writers’ works,with Jen’s novels developing the most mature approach to and outlook on cosmopolitanism itself.Kingston’s cosmopolitanism,by comparison,is restricted to Chinatowns of the post-War era;Tan,though she moves beyond China,remains bounded by the limitations of post-1949 life for Chinese Americans.Jen’s cosmopolitanism,on the other hand,is freer since she is no longer bound by time and space in the post-1960 era.This project also finds that cosmopolitanism is cultivated by both nature and nurture.The target writers all have Chinese cultural roots,but they embody varying forms of cosmopolitanism because of their different material conditions,such as family background and personal experience.The historical context is also significant in the development of cosmopolitanism.It is also important to note that the cosmopolitanism we identify in all three writers is not an identity per se,nor is it political;instead,it is an ethical-cultural disposition.This project is an attempt to capture new trends in Chinese American literary studies in the context of globalization.That cosmopolitanism is a theme in Chinese American literature also validates early discussions of world/global literature.More importantly,since the theme of the project corresponds to the idea of“A Community with A Shared Future for Humanity(人类命运共同体)”,it is a pragmatic approach to take a comparative literary studies approach to Chinese literature and Western literature in the framework of cosmopolitanism.