Western Feminist Literary Criticism: Its Features And Effect On Chinese Feminist Criticism

Since1980s, the impact of western feminist literary criticism has reached Chinaand a large number of related books and works of art have been translated and studied.But given the limited resources and the deep-rooted Chinese cultural tradition, thetheory and approaches of western feminist literary criticism were studiedunsystematically, with no in-depth or only on a surface level in China. Contrasted by afull-fledged development of feminist movement and theory in the West, littleemphasis has been placed in China on the literary theory and practice in terms of adeeper analysis of women’s history, rights, social status, class and ethnicity.In this thesis the feminist belief and the application of feminist literary criticismwill be discussed and analyzed to highlight the great contributions that have beenaccumulated in this field. Comparison is made in terms of European Americanfeminism with African American feminism and Chinese feminist literary criticismwith western feminist literary criticism. The thesis is written in hope that the rightunderstanding and acceptance of western feminist philosophy by interested Chinesescholars will be achieved. It is also expected to become part of a stream of force thatpromotes the development of feminist literary criticism in China.This thesis is divided into4chapters. In Chapter One, it deals with the definition,theory and historical development of feminist literary criticism focusing on someprominent female writers who challenged the male-dominated literary cannon. InChapter Two, some distinct strains of feminism will be explored. The discussioncovers American feminism, British feminism, French feminism and African Americanfeminism. Next, a comparison is made between European American feminism andAfrican American feminism and a conclusion is drawn that African Americans facethe double oppression of racism and sexism. Chapter Three is about the influencesWestern feminist literary criticism has made on Chinese literary criticism. Acomparison between Chinese feminist literature and that from the West is made. Itdiscusses the development, differences, achievements, academic values and theconversion from the aggressive term “Feminist Movement” fighting for women’s political rights to a mild one about “Feminism” focusing on female quality in China.The focus is laid on a full understanding of the western concept of feminism in Chinaand the promotion of Chinese women’s awakening and feminist consciousness. Thelast chapter deals with feminist literature from both sides of the Taiwan Straits.Transcendence of female characters in the development of women’s literature creationis detected. It calls for exploring Chinese cultural tradition and feminist criticism withChinese characteristic. The thesis is brought to a natural end with the conclusion thatChinese feminist literature is no copy for its western counterparts and it will definitelydevelop in its own unique way that goes in conformity with Chinese culturalbackground and social traditions.