An Adaptation-Theoretical Study Of The Intergenerational Integration In The Joy Luck Club

The exploration of cultural integration between the East and the West has been a heated topic by numerous researchers and scholars. However, it is less common to study the intercultural integration on the basis of literary works from the angle of the Adaptation Theory. On this standpoint, the author tentatively makes a thoroughly pragmatic analysis of the cultural integration through abundant cases in the novel The Joy Luck Club. The intergenerational integration of Chinese immigrant mothers and American-born daughters indicates a blending of two different worlds, the East and the West. The creator of this novel, Amy Tan has ever been applauded as a linguistic magician.The present study has the following findings.①It is feasible and practicable for The Adaptation Theory to be applied into literature appreciation as a new and comparatively systematic angle which can be testified by the analysis of the abundant corpus;②Mutual understanding and reconciliation are very important. When making linguistic choices, adaptation to language users’linguistic realities and the related contextual correlates involving the physical, social, mental world in terms of cognitive factors, social relationships, beliefs, personalities, education levels, emotions and motivations, etc. helps us with successful communication, whether within the language or not;③It is sufficiently possible for the theoretical and practicable complementation of Eastern culture and Western culture, which can be seen from the dynamic inter-adaptation and integration process of the mothers and daughters in the novel;④Under multiculturalism, China English, as the result of language adaptation should and can have its cultural identity, which can be reflected in the adaptive linguistic choices such as Chinese phonetics, wade-Giles system or a hybrid of English and Chinese in the novel;⑤In another sense, it has theoretically proved that it’s impossible for one common English labeled "Esperanto" with privileges over the other language, so with the Standard English, given that the inter-adaptation to bicultural linguistic realties in cross-cultural communication.In this thesis, the author, on the basis of qualitative analysis, combines The Adaptation Theory with literature interpretation and appreciation. This study is conducive to enrich the adaptation-theoretic research and in turn it helps broaden the perspective range of appreciating literary works. Second, this research helps us with better understanding and appreciating the theme and linguistic art in the novel The Joy Luck Club. Third, the present study gives us a new insight into the successful communication strategies, so it has a practical meaning for guiding our interpersonal relationships in reality. Moreover, from the study, we have acknowledged that English varieties are the adaptation products of our Age, so with China English. Finally, this study sheds us new light on the meaning of multi-cultural integration.