State-nation·Imaginary·City

Yingjin Zhang(1957—2022)was a distinguished overseas scholar in the field of modern and contemporary Chinese literature and cultural studies.As a transnational intellectual,his multiple perspectives helped him critically apply Western theories when discussing important theoretical issues.He is able to trace the origins of Chinese contemporary literature and culture through diverse perspectives by studying literary history,disciplinary history,and cultural history.Zhang’s global vision,innovative methods,and extensive literary support have paved the way for new directions and patterns in the study of overseas Chinese modern literature and culture.Throughout his research,state-nation,imaginary and city emerged as key interpretive devices central to his examination of literature and culture.This paper evaluates Zhang’s research and analyzes his views on modern and contemporary Chinese literature and culture by analyzing representative literary and film texts,so as to deeply explore the unique value of his texts.The paper is comprised of an introduction,three main chapters and a conclusion.The introduction provides an overview of Zhang’s scholarly background,works and research status while also establishing the research ideas,methods and significance.Chapter one reviews the academic debates surrounding the meaning of "state-nation" and assesses the significance of Zhang’s redefinition of this concept.In addition,this chapter examines how Zhang interprets Chinese contemporary literature and culture within the rubric of national identity by clarifying the basis of overseas research traditions.On this basis,chapter two interrogates visual culture and explores body awareness and a sense of cultural rootseeking implicit in folklore films that have gone international,scrutinizing how China is projected into images and the realities intertwined with these images.Chapter three takes up the theme of "city" as an entry point,extending the nexus of modernity and urbanism to investigate spatial and gender issues in the city.Then,the fluidity,diversity and creativity of space are discovered through the lens of the wanderer,accompanied by the recovery of female subjectivity in urban space and the construction of a new discourse system.Finally,the conclusion adopts a global perspective to assess Zhang’s contributions and limitations in the field of literature and culture studies and proposes further avenues for future research.