Value Changes, The Center Of Digestion And Successfully Convert

This thesis discusses Han Ziqi's ethnic identity change in The Jade King--History of A Chinese Muslim Family and Mona's in Mona in the Promised Land. This discussion consists of three parts, respectively aiming at exploring the cause, course, and consequence of their ethnic identity changes.This thesis first refers to Anzaldúa's"borderland"theory to demonstrate that Han Ziqi's and Mona's self-reorientations and reorientations by others change their ethnic identities. Han Ziqi judges himself and gets judged according to the Huis'assessment values. Thus he is no longer a Han but a Hui. Mona uses the basic Jewish assessment values to evaluate her words and deeds; her family and friends also evaluate her in accordance with the Jewish assessment values. Hence she is no longer a Chinese American but a Jewish American.Then this thesis refers to the perspective of"la facultad"by Anzaldúa to observe how Han Ziqi and Mona employ the method of de-centering to resist the dominant ethnic groups'assimilation, thereby attaining their preferable ethnic identities. Their de-centering comprises two parts: unearthing some truths of ethnic identity change that are deliberately misinterpreted by the dominant ethnic groups, and revealing some self-contradictions of the dominant ethnic groups'interpretations of ethnic identity change. Through de-centering, Han Ziqi and Mona learn that the dominant ethnic groups'real intent is to assimilate minorities and consolidate their status as the"centers."This knowledge helps the minorities weaken the dominant ethnic groups, thereby empowering the minorities. The minorities'rise facilitates Han Ziqi's dominance-to-minority and Mona's minority-to-minority identity changes.Finally, this thesis employs the theory of"new mestiza consciousness"by Anzaldúa to study the results of Han Ziqi's and Mona's ethnic identity changes and regards them as triumphs. Han Ziqi stimulates many good characteristics typical of the Hans, and Mona knows more about her Chineseness. In the meantime, both attain freedom: Han Ziqi feels free to discard the bad ethnic characteristics of both the Hans and the Huis, and Mona enjoys free ethnic identity choice.Based upon the above analysis, this thesis draws the following conclusion: Han Ziqi's and Mona's ethnic identity changes are caused by their self-reorientations and reorientations by others; they resist the dominant ethnic groups'assimilation and gain their desired ethnic identities by the means of de-centering their communities; their ethnic identity changes are triumphant.