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Rationality, Identity and Choice: an Ethical Criticism of Dr Han Suyin’S Autobiography

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Rationality, Identity and Choice: an Ethical Criticism of Dr Han Suyin’S Autobiography RATIONALITY, IDENTITY AND CHOICE: AN ETHICAL CRITICISM OF DR HAN SUYIN’S AUTOBIOGRAPHY FLORENCE KUEK CHEE WEE Malaya of FACULTY OF ARTS AND SOCIAL SCIENCES UNIVERSITY OF MALAYA KUALA LUMPUR University 2018 RATIONALITY, IDENTITY AND CHOICE: AN ETHICAL CRITICISM OF DR HAN SUYIN’S AUTOBIOGRAPHY FLORENCE KUEK CHEE WEE Malaya of THESIS SUBMITTED IN FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY FACULTY OF ARTS AND SOCIAL SCIENCES UNIVERSITY OF MALAYA UniversityKUALA LUMPUR 2018 UNIVERSITY OF MALAYA ORIGINAL LITERARY WORK DECLARATION Name of Candidate : Florence Kuek Chee Wee Matric No : AHA130006 Name of Degree : Doctor of Philosophy Title of Project Paper / Research Report / Dissertation / Thesis (―this Work‖): Rationality, Identity And Choice: An Ethical Criticism Of Dr Han Suyin‘s Autobiography Field of Study : Chinese Literature And Chinese Politics I do solemnly and sincerely declare that: (1) I am the sole author/writer of this Work; (2) This Work is original; (3) Any use of any work in which copyrightMalaya exists was done by way of fair dealing and for permitted purposes and any excerpt or extract from, or reference to or reproduction of any copyright work has been disclosed expressly and sufficiently and theof title of the Work and its authorship have been acknowledged in this Work; (4) I do not have any actual knowledge nor do I ought reasonably to know that the making of this work constitutes an infringement of any copyright work; (5) I hereby assign all and every rights in the copyright to this Work to the University of Malaya (―UM‖), who henceforth shall be owner of the copyright in this Work and that any reproduction or use in any form or by any means whatsoever is prohibited without the written consent of UM having been first had and obtained; (6) I am fully aware that if in the course of making this Work I have infringed any copyright whether intentionally or otherwise, I may be subject to legal action or any other action as may be determined by UM. UniversityCandidate‘s Signature Date: Subscribed and solemnly declared before, Witness‘s Signature Date: Name: Designation: ii RATIONALITY, IDENTITY AND CHOICE: AN ETHICAL CRITICISM OF DR HAN SUYIN’S AUTOBIOGRAPHY ABSTRACT When China was completely closed to the Western world between during the Cold War, namely, 1947 to 1991, China-born Eurasian author and physician Dr Han Suyin, who became British citizen and Swiss resident, was among the few who were allowed to visit China. Though controversial, her autobiographical accounts regarding 20th century China was quite notable. Her reconstructed modern Chinese history pointed to the birthing of a ―phoenix‖ namely, China, hinting on a new ethical order in East-West relations. Captured in her six-volume autobiography, namely The Crippled Tree series, the East-West conflicts also surfaced in the microcosm of Han Suyin‘s family history as well as her own identity search. Autobiographies are traditionally understood as means of self-redemption or self-validation of the respectiveMalaya autobiographers. In the case of Dr Han Suyin, it was an epistemological means to her self-knowledge and self-assertion. Having rejected her maiden name Rosalie, Han Suyin learned later that she was to embrace her dual-ethnicity after all. Theof adoption of the Chinese pseudonym ―Han Suyin‖ was one of her efforts to reconstruct her new identity. By revisiting the ethical issues in her family saga as well as the experience of the mixed-race individuals, Han Suyin went through the plethora of taboo, trauma, confusion, multiple ethical choices, plenty of dilemmas and a lifetime of soul-searching for a place where she could be home. The entire process of rejecting ―Rosalie,‖ accepting ―Rosalie‖ and thriving beyond ―Rosalie‖ was, nonetheless, the best reflection of her mode of survival in a series of debatable ethical choices. Moreover, her choices were in stark difference when compared with the choices made by her siblings and her Eurasian peers. This thesis chieflyUniversity employs Ethical Literary Criticism (ELC) in examining the various ethical dimensions in Han Suyin‘s autobiographical series. Keywords: Han Suyin, autobiography, ethical literary criticism, identity iii RATIONALITY, IDENTITY AND CHOICE: AN ETHICAL CRITICISM OF DR HAN SUYIN’S AUTOBIOGRAPHY ABSTRAK Negara China melaksanakan Prinsip ―Pintu Tertutup‖ dan tersisih dari politik antarabangsa dalam tempoh 1941-1991. Penulis dan doktor Eurasian terkenal Dr Han Suyin yang berasal dari Negara China tetapi menjadi warga British dan menetap di Switzerland, adalah antara segelintir kecil yang dibenarkan melawat negara asalnya pada dekad-dekad akhir waktu itu. Walaupun pandangan dalam autobiografi beliau mengundang banyak perbalahan, kisah beliau mengenai masyarakat dan suasana Negara China semasa abad ke-20 tetap disanjungi. Selain menggunakan simbol burung ―phoenix‖ yang berlahir semula untuk memberi gambaran perkembangan sejarah moden Cina, beliau juga mengesyorkan prinsip etika baru dalam hubungan Timur- Barat. Dalam siri autobiografi The Crippled Tree Malayayang merangkumi enam buah (6) buku, beliau telah meneliti cerita keluarga beliau di samping proses menetapi jati diri. Penulis-penulis autobiografi biasanya memilih bentuk kesusasteraan ini sebagai cara penyelamatan dan penentuan diri. Dalamof kes Dr Han Suyin, penulisan autobiografi menjadi cara beliau untuk mencapai pengetahuan diri dan menonjolkan ketampilan diri. Setelah menolak nama asalnya iaitu Rosalie, Han Suyin bernekad untuk menerima hakikat yang tidak dapat dialihkan, bahawa beliau adalah individu dengan dua keturunan. Sementara itu, beliau berusaha menukar jati diri beliau dengan pilihan- pilihan yang sukar. Antaranya, penggunaan nama samaran ―Han Suyin‖ merupakan salah satu cara beliau untuk membina jati diri baru. Semasa menceritakan kisah-kisah kaum kerabat beliau dan individu-individu berketurunan dwi-ras, Han Suyin juga menghadapi pelbagai isu seperti pantang larang masyarakat, trauma, kekeliruan, pilihan etikaUniversity (ethical choice), dilema dan pencarian tanah air beliau. Sesungguhnya, Han Suyin telah menolak ―Rosalie,‖ kemudian menerima semula ―Rosalie,‖ malah melangkah depan bersama ―Rosalie‖ dengan jati diri baru menunjukkan upaya kemandirian beliau, bahkan pilihan-pilihan beliau berlainan dengan individu Eurasian lagi. Teori Ethical Literary Criticism (ELC) digunakan dalam tesis ini untuk meneliti pelbagai isu dan dimensi etika yang dipaparkan dalam autobiografi Han Suyin. Kata kunci: Han Suyin, autobiografi, kritik etika (ethical literature criticism), identiti iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I shall hereby reckon my heartfelt indebtedness to my supervisors, Associate Professor Dr. Fan Pik Wah, Head of Department of Chinese Studies; and Dr Ling Tek Soon, Senior Lecturer at The Institute for China Studies, for their invaluable guidance throughout the course of my research and thesis writing. Without their efficient supervision, collaboration in journal article publications, timely prompting and consistent encouragement, the completion of this doctorate work would not be possible. I feel indebted to two lovely ladies, Miss Pauline Cheah and Madam Goh Hooi Lay for sacrificing their precious time to assist in proofreading of this thesis. I shall not leave out thanking all my support groups, namely, my churchmates at Balai Baptist Kalvari, colleagues at First City Univerity College, and ChristianMalaya Fellowship students. Last but not least, I am thankful to ourof Lord God who has prepared the way for me to pursue and complete this doctorate programme without any complications. His gift of wonderful family members and cousins who have been my cheerleaders along this journey is beyond the goodness I could ever ask for. All praise to God, the designer and perfector of my faith and life. Soli Deo Gloria. University v TABLE OF CONTENTS Acknowledgements ........................................................................................................... v Table of Contents ............................................................................................................. vi Romanisation Of The Chinese Characters ........................................................................ x List of Diagrams ............................................................................................................... xi List of Tables................................................................................................................... xii List of Symbols and Abbreviations ................................................................................ xiii List of Appendices ......................................................................................................... xiv CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION .................................................................................. 1 1.1 Research Background ..............................................................................................Malaya 6 1.2 Research Question ................................................................................................... 9 1.3 Research Objectives................................................................of ............................... 12 1.4 Significance of Research ....................................................................................... 13 1.5 Limitations ............................................................................................................. 16 1.6 Literature Review .................................................................................................
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