Image Of China In The Citizen Of The World From The Perspective Of Comparative Literature Imagology

Oliver Goldsmith(1730-1774)is one of the most important English writers in the 18th century,and is known for his unique writing style and reflections on the fate of mankind.The Citizen of the World is one of Goldsmiths most famous works.The Citizen of the World,also known as Letters of a Chinese Philosopher,Living in London,to His Friends in the East,is a representative work of the style of "Oriental Letters",which is an important work in the history of Sino-British relations and exchanges for introducing Chinese culture to Europe.Using the popular epistolary style at that time,this book aims to criticize and reflect on British politics,law,religion and society by creating an idealized image of China with enlightened politics and high morality through the introduction of the Chinese philosopher Lien Chi Altangi,who travels and lives in London,Based on the background of the novel in the period of Sinomania in Europe in the 18th century,this thesis uses the principle of comparative literature imagology to analyze the concrete manifestation of the Chinese image in The Citizen of the World from the inside of the text,and probes into the deep reasons why Goldsmith shaped the Chinese image through the external research method of the text.It is found that the collective imagination of British society about China has an important influence on Goldsmith’s image of China.The dissertation consists of four chapters apart from the introduction and conclusion.Chapter One is literature review.Chapter Two details the background of the era of The Citizen of the World.Chapter Three analyzes the image of China in The Citizen of the World from the aspects of Chinese politics,law,religion and people.Chapter Four analyzes Goldsmith’s perception of China,including Goldsmith’s information sources about Chinese image,Goldsmith’s attitude toward China,and Goldsmith’s purpose of creating The Citizen of the World.Through analyzing the image of China in The Citizen of the World and its era and social background,this thesis draws the conclusion:The image of China in The Citizen of the World is not an entirely real and objective image,but a Utopian image of the Other,which is used by Goldsmith to question the reality of English society,criticize the current malpractice,and seek the light of enlightenment to transform the society.Goldsmith’s description of the image of China is not intended to promote and disseminate Chinese culture,but rather to criticize the English social situation with the help of Chinese ideology and culture and to use the constructed idealized Other to cause English people to reflect on their own social reality.