English literary studies and China’s modernity

Abstract

The reception of English literature in China is intertwined with China’s project of modernization in the twentieth century. This paper looks at English literature as a cultural formation as well as an academic discipline in China at three different historical periods: from the late nineteenth to the mid–twentieth centuries, from the early 1950s to the mid–1970s, and from the end of the Cultural Revolution to the present time. In outlining the history of English literary studies, our purpose is to show that the relocation of English literature in China, either through translation or critical studies, is never just an intellectual or academic operation that is independent of or free from political and ideological engagement, and to show that the development of English literary studies in China must be considered in close relation to the formation and growth of China’s modern consciousness. Some of the issues the essay attempts to discuss include: English literature and China’s modernity, ideology and literary studies, value and critical positioning.