Famous Chinese Short Stories as Retold by Lin Yutang: How a Chinese-American Mediated Between His Two Cultures

Dr. Liu analyzes Lin's rewriting in Famous Chinese Short Stories through the lens of his reinterpretation of xingling to explain how Lin Yutang stood at the crossroads between China and the west, between tradition and modernity. Liu suggests that Lin may be considered as a cultural ambassador, a liberal cosmopolitan, or a partial Orientalist. In his meditating role between China and the west, Lin engaged in a form of cultural diplomacy that generated what Liu calls the "soft power" of Chinese tradition.