Reading Chinese American Literature to Learn about America, China, and Chinese America

Abstract

It is my conviction, and I believe many have such experiences, that one becomes better aware of one's nationality and cultural identity when coming into contact with, or living among, another people.In 1980 I had an opportunity to go to Hawaii as a visiting scholar of the East West Center. It was my first time abroad, and to prepare myself, I read the only reference book I could find at that time—James Michener's Hawaii, which aroused my interest in the Chinese living there. In Hawaii, the Chinese Americans were very friendly to us, the first batch of scholars from the People's Republic of China, and we in turn felt a close affinity with them. After all, we are all descendants of Yan Di and Huang Di. Indeed, the same yellow skin and dark hair and eyes bind not only the Chinese but also the Asians together. In Hawaii I made friends with Filipinos, Malaysians, Singaporeans, and Thais and developed lasting friendships with a few Japanese Americans and haoles, who are the minority but are not discriminated ...