Transcending The “Other”: A Study On Robin Hyde’s Views Of China

Robin Hyde is regarded as one of the most important poets and writers of the twentieth century in New Zealand.She was the only Western woman journalist to come to the front line during the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression.Owing to her detour to China and her coverage of the War,Hyde produced a large number of literary works during her lifetime and wrote several poems about China as well as a memoir-Dragon Rampant.These works not only provide a western perspective of wartime China,but also convey her attitude towards China and her unique views of China.Dragon Rampant is a first-person account of China under Japanese invasion,with a focus on a variety of subjects,including the war-torn Chinese civilians and army and the brutal Japanese invaders.It chronicles the death,poverty,disease and massacres she observed and even suffered in China,as well as the kindness she received during her travels.As such,the book is not only of great historical value,but also of profound cultural and literary value.Dragon Rampant achieves transcendence in terms of literary style,cultural perception and life values,reflecting Robin Hyde’s concern for humanity,her sense of culture,her perception of life and her unique views of China beyond Western centrism.This thesis,from the perspective of cross-cultural imagology,explores the process of Robin Hyde’s views of China,the reasons for the change of Robin Hyde’s views of China and its implications,based on her China-related compositions.As is revealed,Robin Hyde’s views of China have a commonality and universal perception of Westerners’ observation of China,but also a uniqueness in her perception of China.From encountering the “Other”,witnessing the “Other”,empathizing with the “Other”,she finally transcended the “Other”.Hyde’s views of China are not static.As she entered China,reported the war front,and deeply contacted the Chinese people,her views of China and the Chinese people were constantly adjusted.Unlike most Westerners who blindly criticized China and Chinese people at the time,Hyde saw a China torn apart by Japanese aggression and Chinese people living a miserable life.The brutal occupation of the Japanese army made Hyde angry,and the tenacious resistance of the Chinese people made her deeply moved.Hyde truthfully recorded what she saw and experienced in China,and her views of China were more objective,revealing sympathy for the Chinese people and expectations for China’s win.The reasons for Hyde’s views of China were closely related to her personal experiences,as she empathized with wartime China,and condensed this feeling into a lament for her fate and sympathy for the Chinese people,which in turn had a key influence on the formation of Hyde’s views of China.As the first Western woman journalist and writer to penetrate the front lines of the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression,Robin Hyde enriched the Westerners’ knowledge of the War with her writings about China.Her writings provided a different perspective for the West to learn about and understand China,but also reflected on humanity at a deeper level,transcending the common Western views of China in the same era.Combining her own experiences,Robin Hyde has progressively reshaped her perception of China,forming unique views of China that transcends the “Other”.