Female Cross-Dressing in Chinese Literature Classics and their English Versions
Streszczenie
Cross-dressing, as a cultural practice, suggests gender ambiguity
and allows freedom of self expression. Yet, it may also serve to reaffirm
ideological stereotypes and the binary distinctions between male and female,
masculine and feminine, homosexual and heterosexual. To explore the nature
and function of cross-dressing in Chinese and Western cultures, this paper
analyzes the portrayals of cross-dressing heroines in two Chinese stories:
《木木木》 The Ballad of Mulan (500–600 A.D.), and 《梁梁梁梁梁梁台》The Butterfly
Lovers (850–880 A.D.). Distorted representations in the English translated texts
are also explored.