The Mutations Of Three Chinese American Cultural Identities In Gish Jen’s Novels

This thesis analyzes Gish Jen’s three novels in a close textual reading,combining the ideas and concepts of fluid identity,performative identity and hybrid identity,so as to explore and present the evolution of Gish Jen’s cultural identity politics,from fluid identity in Typical American,performative identity stressing ethnicity in Mona in the Promised Land to hybrid identity in The Love Wife.Gish Jen’s anti-essentialist view of ethnic identity in these three works reveals postmodern identity emphasizing the mutability and flexibility of identity.In Typical American,Gish Jen claims that this is an American story at the beginning of this novel and tries to downplay Chinese culture,focusing on the gradual Americanization of the Chinese immigrants including Ralph,Helen,and Theresa in various aspects.In her second novel Mona in the Promised Land,Gish Jen portrays different characters’ performance of identity,especially the protagonist Mona Chang who transforms from Chinese American into Jewish American.For Mona,switch to Judaism is her free choice,so she believes "American means being whatever you want,and I happened to pick being Jewish"（49）.In Gish Jen’s third novel The Love Wife,there is an interracial family that includes Carnegie Wong who is a Chinese American father,a white wife Janie nicknamed Blondie with American-European descent,two adopted Asian daughters Wendy and Lizzy,and the Wongs’ biological fair-skinned and blond son Bailey.Thus,they are more or less baffled as to their hybrid identity in this interracial family.