Grounded in history and guided by theory, this book proposes a new inclusive cultural label, Hualish, to remedy the limitations of the word “Chinese” and replace it as the culture label for the people of “greater China“ origin. The book first introduces the Culture Design Paradigm, a general culture design paradigm with three core components: vitality, structure, and foci. It then uses the Culture Design Paradigm to construct the new conceptual identity, Hualish. This is followed by detailed discussion of three practical paths that can lead to a desirable Hualish identity - the recipe path, the example path, and the normative path. Lastly, the book proposes Humanistic Hualish as a converging and gravitative Hualish culture.Built upon a rigorous academic foundation, the book provides practical guidance to individuals, families, associates, as well as organizations.
"Rethinking Chineseness: Translational Sinophone Identities in the Nanyang Literary World is the first book devoted to Sinophone Southeast Asian literature in the English-speaking world. Conceptually innovative and flawlessly written, this book makes an important contribution not only to the emergent and growing field of Sinophone studies, but also to Southeast Asian studies, Chinese studies, comparative literary studies, diaspora studies, and minority and multicultural studies. Anyone interested in questions of identity calibrated through such vectors as language, culture, history, geography, and nationality will find this book to be extremely valuable. This is an impressive accomplishment." - Professor Shu-mei Shih, University of California at Los Angeles "E. K. Tan has done magnificent work in rethinking literary and cultural politics in the context of Sinophone articulations. In Rethinking Chineseness he looks into sources drawn from the Sinophone communities in Southeast Asia, identifies indigenous and diasporic contestations, and teases out the radical elements in the contemporary debate about Chinese identities. Both historically engaged and theoretically provocative, Tan's book is a most important source for anyone interested in Chinese and Sinophone literary and cultural studies." - Professor David Der-wei Wang, Harvard University "With his illuminating historical and theoretical mapping of the concepts, from Overseas Chinese to Chinese Diaspora, Chineseness to Sinophone, E.K. Tan has done a brilliant job in this highly challenging, interdisciplinary project by weaving together discourses in various academic fields and providing an integrated cross-referential discussion. His selection of works by Singaporean and Malaysian writers fills in glaring gaps and further contributes to the richness and complexities of the notion of Sinophone literature and culture. It is a definitive basic reference in this field." - Professor Quah Sy Ren, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
This is a comparative study of the politics of Chinese cultural identity facing China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, the US-Chinese, and the Chinese diaspora in the West. The author challenges current discussions of hybridity and nationalism by contrasting the experiences of Taiwan, Hong Kong and US-Chinese with those of China and the Chinese diaspora.
This definitive anthology casts Sinophone studies as the study of Sinitic-language cultures born of colonial and postcolonial influences. Essays by such authors as Rey Chow, Ha Jin, Leo Ou-fan Lee, Ien Ang, Wei-ming Tu, and David Wang address debates concerning the nature of Chineseness while introducing readers to essential readings in Tibetan, Malaysian, Taiwanese, French, Caribbean, and American Sinophone literatures. By placing Sinophone cultures at the crossroads of multiple empires, this anthology richly demonstrates the transformative power of multiculturalism and multilingualism, and by examining the place-based cultural and social practices of Sinitic-language communities in their historical contexts beyond "China proper," it effectively refutes the diasporic framework. It is an invaluable companion for courses in Asian, postcolonial, empire, and ethnic studies, as well as world and comparative literature.
Among the many contributions of this study are its examination of different literary genres, its broad chronological scope (from the eleventh to the twentieth centuries), its equally extensive spatial range (including China, the Xi Xia Kingdom, Japan, Vietnam, and Korea), and its attention to "minority" cultures.
Drawing upon wide-ranging case study material, the book explores the ever-changing personal and cultural identity of Chinese migrants and the diverse cosmopolitan communities they create. The various models of newly-forged communities are examined with the added dimension of personal identity and the individual's place in society. With particular emphasis on the changing face of Chinese ethnicity in a range of established places of convergence, Chan draws on extensive experience and knowledge in the field to bring the reader a fresh, fascinating and ultimately very human analysis of migration, culture, identity and the self.
Grounded in history and guided by theory, this book proposes a new inclusive cultural label, Hualish, to remedy the limitations of the word "Chinese" and replace it as the culture label for the people of "greater China" origin. The book first introduces the Culture Design Paradigm, a general culture design paradigm with three core components: vitality, structure, and foci. It then uses the Culture Design Paradigm to construct the new conceptual identity, Hualish. This is followed by detailed discussion of three practical paths that can lead to a desirable Hualish identity - the recipe path, the example path, and the normative path. Lastly, the book proposes Humanistic Hualish as a converging and gravitative Hualish culture. Built upon a rigorous academic foundation, the book provides practical guidance to individuals, families, associates, as well as organizations.
Questioning what the term 'Chinese art' means in the era of global art, this book situates Chinese contemporary art in the matrix of global expositions and political transnationalisms. Its case studies explore the changing political concept of Chineseness by examining performative, body-oriented video and eco-feminist works.
This book examines four canonical Chinese writers (Xiao Hong, Yu Dafu, Lao She, and Zhang Ailing) in relation to their translations, interpellations, and interpretations in different languages.
