21세기 북미화인화문단편소설에 나타난 인종문제에 대한 관심과 표현

Abstract

The following three things are evident in 21C North American Chinese-language short stories. First, there are not so many works featuring non-Chinese races. Second, the proportion of works in which non-Chinese races appear as major characters is very low. Third, there are wide gaps in appearance frequency or role importance by race. In 21C North American Chinese-language short stories, Whites characters are usually described as people with authority or power, or people with status or wealth to exercise it. On the other hand, POC characters are likely to belong to the lower social classes, and are often problematic people that are rarely seen in Whites characters. Moreover, there is discrimination among POC characters, so the attitude toward Asian characters differs from that toward Blacks or Latinos characters. In 21C North American Chinese-language short stories, the writers recognize the initiative of Whites and try to win their approval. However, the writers sometimes implicitly express their dissatisfaction with what is contrary to expectations in a kind of distorted way. It is mainly expressed in two ways. First, it is described that Whites men loot Chinese women from Chinese men, but in the end, it cannot be an ideal combination. Second, it is described that Chinese men are attracted to the sexual seductions of Whites women, but eventually morally restrain themselves, and fantasy elements are strongly revealed in the description. Most of the 21C North American Chinese-language short stories internalize the racial ideology of Whites. It makes Whites superior and POC inferior, places the overseas Chinese in a model minority group, and attempts to grade by race. It rather sticks to the ideology of ‘racial triangulation’ by insisting on the experience and cultural pride of the overseas Chinese, who were the majority in China. However, some works showed the possibility of forming a consensus and solidarity with other minorities by pointing out overseas Chinese’s prejudice against Blacks and accusing the plight of indigenous people.