Abstract

The history of the research on Modern Chinese Literature in America has been nearly a century since 1930s.It has taken the leading position on the research of Modern Chinese Literature around the world and it is closely connected to the research works in China.It has now become a very important work to do the research on the study of Modern Chinese Literature in America so as to promote the development of the research on Modern Chinese Literature，to expend the influence of Modern Chinese Literature around the world and also to explore the relationship between the research in China and abroad.This is the reason why I choose this as the topic of my dissertation.

There are five fronts in this dissertationapart from the introduction and conclusion.These five fronts can be seen as three parts：the first part is Chapters One and Two.It will discuss the definition of Modern Chinese Literature in different stages and the important achievements made in this field.The second part is Chapters Three and Four.This part will deal with two theoretical topics，“The Backflow of Criticism” and “The Diaphragm Effect”.The third part is Chapter Five.In this part，I will try to put the research on Modern Chinese Literature in America into the background of international Modern Chinese Literature studies and try to find the historical significance of the research.

There are two major tasks to be done in Chapter One：to find the different stages on Modern Chinese Literature and dominate them.The history of the research on Modern Chinese Literature in America can be divided into three stages since 1927：the first stage is from 1927 to the late 1950s.Just like the case in the other Western countries，the research on Modern Chinese Literature in America is separated from Sinology.At the beginning，it is not an important subject，so it is called the period of pre-disciplinarity.The second stage is from the beginning of the 1960s to the late 1980s.During this period，the foundational book C.T.Hsia's A History of Modern Chinese Fiction was published.The research group also was enlarged during this time.This stage is called the period of disciplinarity.The third stage is from the 1990s till now.During this stage，the researchers on Modern Chinese Literature in America，based on the development of history，science and culture，are no longer limited in their own field，but rather，they try to connect their research areas to those of philosophy，religion，science and other subjects.This stage is called cross-disciplinary period.

The second front will deal with the research centers and the most important scholars in different periods on the study of Modern Chinese Literature.The first important researcher to be discussed in this dissertation is Chi-chen Wang who can be called the first researcher on Modern Chinese Literature although he has so far seldom been mentioned in this field.This part shows great contribution made by Chi-chen Wang on the research of the translation of Modern Chinese Literature.The next section will be devoted to C.T.Hsia.The research on him is from three aspects：the significance of A History of Modern Chinese Fiction；the contradictory of “The Moral Burden”；C.T.Hsia's rethinking on The Gate of Darkness and the essays written by his brother Hsia T.A.The next section will deal with Leo Lee and David Der-wei Wang who are the most influential Harvard Professors in the next twenty year in America.The research on Leo Lee is to focus on his research through culture and urban cultural studies；the research on David Wang is to focus on his study of novels in the late Qing Dynasty and his study on China's lyrical tradition.At the same time，this section will show his contributions to Modern Chinese Literature studies.The following section will discuss the scholars who go to America from mainland China.Ban Wang is one of the most important figures in this period of time.The last section will deal with some non-Chinese scholars.Different culture causes the special characteristic of their research on Modern Chinese Literature.

The third front will discuss the phenomenon of “backflow of criticism” in the research on Modern Chinese Literature in America.The backflow of criticism is a unique critical term coined by the author.This phenomenon appears in the research between native literature and overseas literature.Or more specifically，the backflow of criticism is that native literature is researched by overseas scholars，and later their opinion comes back to the native land.There are three extensive backflows of criticism in Modern Chinese Literature.The first backflow of criticism is caused by A History of Modern Chinese Fiction by C.T.Hsia.When the book came into China，it caused the movement of rewriting the literary history.The second backflow of criticism is between Leo Lee and David Wang's research on “Modernity” and the research on “Modernity” in China.The third backflow of criticism shows in the relationship between the research aspects used by the scholars who went to America during the 1980s to 1990s and cultural studies in China.

The main topic in the fourth front is the diaphragm effect.This is also a criticalterm used by the author during the research on the relationship between native literature and overseas literature.There are four sections in this front.The first section is the introduction to the diaphragm effect.Diaphragm is usually considered a negative thing.Actually，it's an objective existence.Diaphragm means to separate the different parts in a connected system.The second section is the double-edged effect in the diaphragm effect.When it associated with the relationship between native literature and overseas literature，we can realize that the diaphragm effect is double edge.Sometimes it is the block between native literature and overseas literature，the research can go deeper only when it is vanished.Sometimes，it is a motive power to promote the communication and understanding，so it will help the development of these researches.The following two sections are two specific diaphragm effects that appeared in the research between native and overseas literature on Modern Chinese Literature：the first one is the argument between C.T.Hsia and Prusek.This argument is caused by the diaphragm effect.Some central topics in this argument are very helpful to the development of the research on Modern Chinese Literature.The other one is based on the problem of “Sinological mentality”.

There are two main topics in the fifth front：the historical significance of the study on Modern Chinese Literature abroad；a call to build up a history of the research.The topics are not limited in America，so the background is changed into abroad.There are two important aspects of the historical significance in the study on Modern Chinese Literature abroad：the first one is to construct the image of Modern Chinese Literature in a multicultural context；and the second one is to discover the positive aspects in the process of Modern Chinese Literature towards world literature.In the end，the author tries to call for building up a history of the research on Modern Chinese Literature abroad.

The conclusion is the last part in which the central ideas of the dissertation are summarized and theorized.