Imagination and Construction of Cultural Identity: A Comparative Study of Different Reports on the 1876 Philadelphia Centennial Exposition

摘要

The 1876 Philadelphia Exposition was held with the intention to celebrate the 100?years anniversary of the independence of the country. To this Exposition, China submitted 720 packed crates of exhibits and a customs official by the name of Li Gui, who was entrusted with the task of writing a report. Li complains about the narrow space assigned to the Chinese Court, but is proud to say that “with careful arrangement, it looked glorious and magnificent,” and visitors from different countries “gasp in admiration with no exception.” However, in the reports written by Americans carried on The Atlantic Monthly , the Chinese exhibits are viewed in a totally different perspective. Whereas William D. Howells makes a hasty comment on the Chinese workers who were still busy unpacking during his one-week stay at the event, Edward H. Knight classifies many Chinese exhibits as “crude and curious inventions.” The Centennial Exposition serves as a space where different cultures meet; therefore, a comparative study of these reports will reveal how the One perceives the other in similar or different ways, and thus open a space for further thoughts as regards cultural stereotypes, cultural awareness and cross-cultural (mis)understandings.中文摘要为纪念独立宣言签署 100 周年，美国于 1876 年在费城首次举办了万国博览会。中国寄送了 720 箱货物参展，并派出一位叫李圭的官员观摩博览会并撰写参展纪实。在这篇题为《美会纪略》的文章中，作者细致叙述了博览会的缘起和各国陈列馆的主要展品，他虽抱怨中国馆地方狭小，但却夸耀说“布置有法，愈觉华美可观”。与此同时，美国《大西洋月刊》上刊登的数篇报道却呈现出截然不同的视角。豪威尔斯仅仅轻描淡写地提及他在博览会逗留的一周时间内，中国人一直在“忙着拆箱”；爱德华·奈特则把很多中国展品列为“粗糙而怪异的发明”之列。费城万国博览会作为中美文化交流史上的一个个案，提供了两个相互陌生的文化之间的相遇，对比上述报道可以观察到作者对待他国文化和母国文化的不同态度，引发人们思考想象他者与建构自我之间的联系，并以此洞悉文化刻板印象、文化认知以及跨文化误读与理解等相关学术问题。