Xenotropism and the Awakening of Literary Expatriatism through Writing Memoirs

Chapter 1 through providing a theoretical analysis of xenotropism, illustrates the psychological and political consequences of living in a foreign country for refugees, expatriates, emigres and exiles. The research in this e-book demonstrates that living in a foreign country for an extended period, causes an intense and vivid transformation in artistic and personal development. This Chapter points to the dearth of research in this area and between xenotropism, the cathartic process of writing of memoir and mental health.

Chapter 2 defines xenotropism, past and current theories of foreignness and the meaning and characteristics of foreignness. It asserts that current thinking perceives the image of the foreign differently. No longer does it sees the foreigner as a neurotic artist, but describes it as an expatriating process towards self development. This section is courageous in its attempt to describe the nature of a spiritual experience and how this is relates to experiencing the foreign. The difference between travelling to a foreign country and actually living there are not the same. Although many people confess they would like to go abroad and live in a foreign country, fewer take the risk to do so. This section also explains that after a long period of time in a foreign country, an expatriate may begin to see it as “home”. This chapter states that there is a need for a new approach to foreignness so that it is not feared. It suggests that this may be accomplished through the merging of the foreign and non-foreign into a new hybrid form. It also examines the differences between the Refugee, the Expatriate, the Immigrant, the Émigré and the Forced Exile. It examines the transformative process of xenotropism or turning to the foreign and discusses the challenges of expatriation. Chapter 2 explores writing as a cathartic process which can alleviate the effects of culture shock. It asserts that a transformative experience in a foreign country can facilitate an understanding and acceptance of different cultures, impact positively and negatively on mental health and represent viable material for writing memoir.

Chapter 3 explores the lives and writing of three writers who lived during difficult and often traumatic periods in China. Emily Hahn, Nien Cheng and Qiu Xiaolong made sense of their different displacements through their writing. Emily Hahn, the expatriate and a prolific writer about China, attempted to inform the West about its culture and people. In contrast to the romantic adventures of Emily Hahn, the political émigré Nien Cheng, documented her harrowing experiences as a prisoner during the Cultural Revolution. Qiu Xiaolong the exile, fled to the United States during the Cultural Revolution. He remains loyal to China and feels he can write more objectively about Chinese history and culture from a distance. Qiu Xiaolong aptly accomplishes this through his character Inspector Chen in his continuing series of detective novels, in which he captures China’s culture and political past.

Chapter 4 begins with a synopsis of Bound, and then details the research design and process. The three areas of the research were to: define xenotropism and explain its features and complications, undertake an analysis of three prominent writers in China’s history and interrogate the relationship between the memoir genre and xenotropism and their links to mental health. A qualitative research design was adopted which employed several techniques: historical research, journaling, interviews and photography. The 11 expatriates were sourced through a search of literary associations and the adoption of the “snowball sampling” technique. A variety of literary techniques were used to design and create the memoir Bound, and the use of Chinese poetry is also justified. Chapter 4 includes a reflection on the research and writing process. It concludes that xenotropism through expatriation, is a transformative process which facilitates artistic and personal development and represents a viable path for the writing of memoir.

The research in this book illustrates that most discussions about cultural differences tend to focus on East to West migrations. The experience of xenotropism can initiate memoir writing and therefore presents a viable field for further research. The extent of transformation as a result of foreignness in terms of both artistic and personal development, has been little studied in the literature. It is through xenotropism that one can move from being “bound” up in their own culture, to becoming “unbound” into a new hybrid form, as a global citizen.

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