Quest for the Chinese Identity
An Analysis of the Reception of A.H. Smith's Chinese Characteristics in Contemporary China, 1990–2014
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 7852467 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Hui Yang (0000-0002-9269-0269, Nanyang Technological University, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2016 |
| Volume | 37 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Pages | 84-91 |
| Publication date | 2016-01-02 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Journal of Intercultural Studies (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0725-6868 • E-ISSN: 1469-9540 |
| Publisher | Informa UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/07256868.2015.1119673 |
| OpenAlex | W2288360652 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 4 |
This article examines how contemporary Chinese engage with Western commentaries on Chinese in their identity construction. It concentrates on the responses of contemporary Chinese towards Chinese Characteristics, a book by Arthur Henderson Smith published in the late nineteenth century. Almost one hundred years after its publication, this ‘old’ book, however, enjoys great popularity in contemporary China. From 1991 to 2014, at least 29 editions have been published. Based on a study of 28 responses of contemporary Chinese towards this book, I argue that instead of being merely submissive or subversive to the authority of the Western text, contemporary Chinese actively appropriate the text for their own agendas of seeking for the Chinese identity, which manifests itself through self-criticism and self-declaration
Aesthetics · Art · China · Chinese literature · Criticism · Literature · Political science · Popularity · Sociology · Chinese history and philosophy · Gender Studies · History · Japanese History and Culture · Law · Philippine History and Culture
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |