Searching for identity through the negotiation of cultural differences

This study concerns how Chinese diasporic writers cross the cultural boundaries to resolve identity problems within the tensions between their land of descent and place of dwelling, and how they open up spaces through writing to negotiate cultural conflicts and use literary presentation to revise and redefine identity. Drawing inspirations from theories on identity (G. H. Mead et al) and cultural studies (G. Hofstede et al), the hor combines theoretical approaches with close textual analysis. The subject matter justifies a sociological perspective. Yet at the same time, what are dealt with are fictional narratives. The study suggests that the writers apply innovative narrative techniques to construct a total discourse of the „Chinese diaspora“. Cross-cultural consciousness enables them to transcend limits of cultural and national boundaries as well as historical backgrounds and events to present a reality truer in essence than any biography, historical or anthropological books can.