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| Predicament in a Cross-cultural Context: Interpretation of Maugham’s China-related Stories |
| ZHANG He-long |
| Literary Institute, Shanghai University of Foreign Languages , Shanghai, 200083 |
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Abstract Maugham wrote more than 150 stories in his lifetime, among which over one third are China-related. These works roughly fall into two major categories: one takes semi-colonial and semi-feudal China as the background, with White colonists or travelers as protagonists, such as “The Taipan”, “Mirage”, and “the consul”. The other takes Southeast Asia or South Pacific islands as the background. Into these stories Chinese elements are integrated into minor characters, plots or details, such as “Letter”, “Honolulu”, “the Door of Opportunity”, and” Footprints in the Jungle”. Both categories reveal the predicament in a cross-cutlural context against the background of colonialism and imperialism, and reflect the unequal political, economic, and cultural relationship between East and West. Rereading these stories certainly helps us understand the artistic value of Maugham’s stories and is of considerable significance for the communication between different cultures and civilizations.
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Received: 30 March 2015
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2015, Vol. 32 
