The Image Of USA In American Born Chinese Writers’ Writing Of The20^th Century

The American born Chinese writers are American writers with Chinese descent who born and grow up in America. Most of them are the descendants of overseas Chinese in America, referring to the first-generation Chinese who immigrate to and settle down in America. Their emotions are rooted in America where they are given birth to and are brought up, but mingled with the pain and hate that they can not be accepted by the American society. Essentially their writing about America is a process of self-writing and self-expressing. With Jade Snow Wong, Maxine Hong Kingston and Gish Jen as the center, this thesis focuses on the America image shaped by them, so as to pay attention to those writers’life experience.The introduction makes a definition of American born Chinese writers and their literary works, and further expounds the research status of this field, the research significance of this subject and the research ideas of this thesis.The first chapter-Identity and Worship summarizes the general writing style of the American born Chinese writers in1930s and1940s. The American born Chinese writers in this period identify with and worship America. Jade Snow Wong, who is the representative writer of this period, creates an image of "heaven America" in her writing to cater to the American society.The second chapter-Reflection and Indignation introduces the writings of American born Chinese writers in1970s and1980s, those writers begin facing up to and reflecting the history of the Chinese American, and make their efforts to proclaim self-existence. What is presented in Maxine Hong Kingston’s The Woman Warrior, Chinaman and Trip master Monkey is a negative America image.The third chapter-Criticism and Creation focuses on the writings of American born Chinese writers in1990s.They explore the answer of the existing and living problems of American born Chinese. Gish Jen’s Typical American presents the America image full of characteristics of the times.The summary is a conclusion of the three parts above which looks back to the America born Chinese writers’life experience and combines the development of the image of USA, then come with an outlook about the collision and mutual understanding between the two different culture of China and the United States.