Writing beyond borders: Derrida, Heidegger, and Zhuangzi in Brian Castro’s After China

Abstract

As is well recognised, the issue of cultural hybridity is central to the work of Australian author Brian Castro who is also of Chinese, Portuguese and English descent. As a writer it is perhaps no wonder that Castro is also deeply concerned with the ways in which language, and particular language systems such as Chinese and English, construct identity. He is in good company, as such metalinguistic skepticism has been a central tenet of Eastern and Western philosophical traditions for centuries. Castro’s novel After China draws attention to the complicated reality of cross-cultural influence and comparative philosophy by opening a dialogue between Eastern philosophers Laozi and Zhuangzi and Western thinkers such as Derrida and Heidegger. In doing so, Castro not only demonstrates the creative potential of cross-cultural fertilization but also explores the idea of ‘cultural hybridity’ in much greater depth by questioning the ontological implications of such cross-cultural hermeneutics.