An Analysis Of Women Characters In Sour Sweet From The Perspective Of Postcolonialism

Sour Sweet,the acclaimed novel by British-Chinese author Timothy Mo,is one of the few novels in British-Chinese literature that depicts Chinatown.The novel tells the story of Mr.Chen’s family’s living conditions in England in the 1960 s,describing the changing mind and identity of immigrants from the perspective of Chinese immigrants.This thesis analyzes the female characters in Sour Sweet with the help of Homi Bhabha’s postcolonial theory and explores the process of Chinese women’s pursuit of identity in the novel from three aspects: cultural hybridity,identity exploration,and identity construction.Through the analysis,the following ideas are found: first,immigrants have lived in other countries for a long time,and the mixing of different cultures and differences in daily life will make Chinese women confused about their own identity;second,cultural differences cause cultural conflicts,and resolving conflicts is an important way for Chinese women to explore their identity;third,the construction of immigrant identity requires understanding and tolerance between different cultures.That is,the Chinese women’s identity establishment requires a multicultural foundation.The hybridity of different cultures provides a third space for immigrants to survive.Chinese immigrants struggle and explore between different cultures,and finally construct their new identity in the third space.They do not belong to any culture but are intermediaries in the third space.This thesis studies Sour Sweet from a postcolonial perspective,which provides a reference for broadening the research angle of the novel and helping readers to better understand its content.At the same time,it also provides some insights into the identity construction of Chinese immigrants in the era of globalization.