Abstract

Since the mid-20th century , a lot of Chinese American writers sprung up in American literary world. Amy Tan, a Chinese American writer, won great reputation after the publication of her first piece of work The Joy Luck Club in 1989, which became very popular among readers. The Joy Luck Club introduces the life of four Chinese mothers who immigrated to America after suffering a lot in China, and the conflicts and contradictions between the mothers and their American-born daughters. The novel’s success lies in the incisive manifestations of the collision and fusion between Chinese and American cultures, which relies on the interaction and changes of relationship between the four mothers and daughters, under the background of cross-cultural communications. To a certain degree, the four pairs of mothers and daughters in The Joy Luck Club represent Chinese and American cultures respectfully. This thesis aims to analyze the change of the mother-daughter relationship in The Joy Luck Club and explore the collision and integration between Chinese and American cultures reflected in the two generations from the cross-cultural perspective. The thesis will also investigate the historical reasons for the formations of the two cultures, and point out that the existence of differences between different cultures is inevitable due to the nations’ historical background, which is also the source leading to the conflicts between different cultures.

Key words: cross-culture; mother-daughter relationship; conciliation; conflict and fusion

Contents

Abstract

摘  要

Introduction.1

Chapter I Cross-culture Revealed in the Mother-daughter Relationship4

1.Cross-cultural Identity4     

2.Concrete Expressions of Cross-culture in the Conciliation of the Two Generations.4

2.1 Manifestations of the Conflicts between the Two Generations.4

    2.1.1 Collisions and Disagreements on Self-Development.4

        2.1.2 Different Family Concepts in China and America5

    2.2 Fusion of the Mother-daughter Relationship.7

Chapter II Conflicts and Causes9

1.Historical Reasons Affecting the Formation of Cultures.9

1.1 National Concepts and Spirit Embodied Through its History.9

    1.2 Conflicts between Chinese Traditional Ideologies and American Religious Belief.9

2.Different Social Customs between Chinese and Americans.10

3.Barrier of Languages and Different Ways of Emotional Expressions11

3.1 Barrier of Language.11

    3.2 Different Ways of Emotional Expressions: Chinese-way Indirectness VS American-way Directness.12

Chapter III Fusion of the Two Different Cultures14

1. The Necessity of the Existence of Cross-cultural Differences.14

2. Awareness of One’s Cultural Identity.14

3. Blood Relationship and Deep Affection Between the Mothers and Daughters.15

Conclusion.16

References.17