The Construction Of Patriarchal Heroic Tradition

This paper intends to explore Chinese American sensibility advocated by Frank Chin and Chinese Americans'viewpoint of survival in Frank Chin's works by way of the heroic images shaped by Chin. It is believed that such a vision comprises Chinese Americans'quest for liberation and survival at its core. Blessed with such struggles as retorting the imposed stereotype, seeking for their cultural identity, and shaping their ethnic heroes, Chinese Americans are made to survive against racial oppression, and fight against the unfair treatment.Frank Chin is a well-known Chinese American writer and critic in America in the 20th century, and literature, cultural criticism, American social and political issues are within his ken. He is also a radical fighter, devoting himself to appealing for Chinese Americans'deserved rights. Putting his active viewpoints into his literary practice, Chin writes a series of novels, dramas and literary criticism. Together with his friends, he compiles two anthologies, Aiiieeeee! and Big Aiiieeeee!, to alarm American society and criticize all forms of oppression, violence and injustice.In chapter one, I intend to show Chinese American history of labor and survival, and their miserable living conditions. The memory of Chinese American is deep rooted in the development of Chinatown. Chinatown is the place where their history began and the place where they were discriminated. As for Chinese American writers, writing about Chinatown is not just make the life of their forefathers recur, but seek their literature root.In chapter two, my aim is to explore the struggle of Chin's against injustice, especially the stereotype imposed by the white, and the divergence between male writers and female writers. The history of Chinese American is the history of years of toil, and the history of struggle in the shadow of racial discrimination. Whether in the media, literary works, movies or American history documents, Chinese American appear in humble and mean images. According to such social realities, Chin believes the foremost task of Chinese American writers is to dispel white racists'distortions and exhibit the historical truth. In the aspect of reappear the historical truth, different Chinese American writers adopt different writing skills and angles of view. Different writing emphasis causes arguments inside these writers. Among them, the dispute between Frank Chin and Kingston is the most representative.In the third chapter, I try to explore Frank Chin's Chinese American sensibility, his heroic complex and the insufficiency of Chin's Chinese American sensibility. What Frank Chin aims to do is to show his heroic complex by rewriting Chinese myths and quoting Chinese classics. By Creation of Heroic Images, he constructs patriarchal heroic tradition for the whole body of Chinese American. That is the reason why he tries to depict Guan Gong and Liang Shan Marsh heroes repeatedly—retort the stereotype imposed by the white and exhibit the masculine image of Chinese American male. As one part in the whole body of American multi-culture the chief task for Chinese American writers is to find their cultural root and stick to it. Meanwhile, as for readers, they should give Chin's Chinese-American Sensibility an objective evaluation, and should not just view it as the action of publicizing Chinese culture.In short, as a famous writer setting feet in race, society, history, etc, Frank Chin shows readers that Chinese American history of survival is a history of struggle. He appeals to the whole society by the mouth of his heroes in his writings, aiming at finding a way of liberation for the whole body of Chinese American. His appeal alarms American society, and enriches American multi-culture as well.