The Literary Narratives of China’s Anti-Japanese War in American World War II Fiction

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

This paper examines the transitional representation of China in American war stories which take the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression as their topic, and argues that China’s role in World War II has not been unintentionally forgotten but deliberately marginalized due to the dynamics of the wartime and postwar Sino-American relationship. On the one hand, through chronological exploration of the literary representation of China in American war stories, it points out that the literary creation is closely related to and deeply influenced by America’s changing view of China. These works reflect a pattern of praise of bravery in wartime, objectification at the end of 20th century, and marginalization in the 21st century. The literary depiction of China shifts from a powerful and positive defender to a weak and helpless victim. On the other hand, it discusses the literary and historical criticism of the representation of China in these works in both America and China. It shows that American scholars tend to study China from historical perspective, which focuses on historical facts but ignores the manipulation of ideology embodied in cultural works. On the contrary, Chinese scholars’ interest is closely related to patriotism, which emphasizes the Orientalism reflected in literary creation.

목차 (Table of Contents)

• Ⅰ. Introduction
• Ⅱ. Literary Representation of China in American World War II Stories
• A. Praise of Bravery in Wartime
• B. Objectification at the End of the 20th Century
• C. Marginalization in the 21st century
• Ⅲ. Criticism of the Representation of China in American World War II Stories
• A. American Studies: Focus on History and Ignorance of Literature
• B. Chinese Studies: Literary Interest due to Patriotism
• Ⅳ. Conclusion
• Works Cited
• Abstract