(Re)Considering Chinese American Literature: Toward Rewriting Literary History in a Global Age

Abstract

Chinese American literature as a sub-stream of both Chinese and American literature, has long been neglected in either Chinese literary history or American literary history as the writers have uncertain identity or multi-identities. But it is such uncertain identity or identities that enable them to become significant for scholars of cross-cultural studies. Their literary practice is significant to literary scholars in general, especially to those of Chinese-Western comparative studies and literary historiography. Their achievements are not only important to the rewriting of American literary history as most of them write in English, but also point out a new orientation of literary historiography by means of language as some still persist in writing in Chinese.