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The purpose of this thesis is to discuss the cultural identity of Chinese
Americans. In examining the two novels, Maxine Hong Kingston's China Men
and Gish Jen's Typical American, I try to discern how Chinese Americans
posit themselves between the two poles, "Chinese" and "American."
The thesis is divided into five chapters. The first and the last chapters
are "Introduction" and "Conculsion" respectively, designed to offer a
summary and a review on the content of the main body. Chapter Two is
concerned with the identity transformation of Chinese Americans. From the
revision of a multicultural canon, we infer the importance and necessity of
a cultural identity with multicultural meaning. Most of my discussion is
based upon Stuart Hall's observation and statements on the issue of cultural
identity. Being in a white dominant society, Chinese Americans should
mainfest their cultural differences for distinction and in order to find for
themselves a unique place. Sustaining both their differences and
similarities with the mainstream society, they would thus be prevented from
genocidal cultural assimilation, or being considered as permanent
unassimilable aliens.
The subject of Chapter Three is China Men. In this book, Kingston attempts
to reconstruct an American history in Chinese Americans' perspective. It is
composed with various resources, such as Chinese legends, stories, and
anecdotes about Chinese immigrants' contribution on the nation building and
development, which are not recorded in official history. In reconstructing
the alternative history, Kingston not only manifests Chinese Americans'
cultural differences, but also confirms their validity and legitimacy in
American society.
The major concern of Chapter Four is Typical American. Instead of Kingston's
reconstructing a history, Gish Jen concentrates on narrating the story of
a Chinese immigrant family. In this book, Jen also inverts the meaning of
"typical American": from white Caucasian American to multicultural,
multiethnic American. Owing to the inversion of meaning, Jen therefore
challenges the assumed conception and stimulates more reconsideration and
redefinition on the term "American."
Moreover, the juxtaposition of the two books' titles is an interesting
comparison. At the first glance, it seems that "Chinese" or "American"
in an either/or choice for Chinese Americans. In fact, their differences
make it impossible to categorize them into either group. As Hall points
out, the cultural identity is not permanently fixed. Fluctuatinhg between
the two poles, Chinese Americans have to find a balance in order to locate
themselves. And this request has to do with a multicultural identity.
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