The Fate of Foreign Literature in Contemporary China

Transnational flows of culture, including literature, can help facilitate communication across social, political, and cultural contexts. In the recent decade, the government in China increasingly places value on traditional Chinese culture as opposed to foreign culture. In the context of a tightening political climate, this paper investigates how literature by foreign authors reaches readers in mainland China. In particular, it studies how Chinese editors select foreign literary works for translation and publication in China. The paper relies on 10-month field research conducted primarily in Beijing and Shanghai in 2023-2024, which included semi-structured interviews with book editors, literary agents, censors, and other intermediaries, as well as participant observations at book fairs, book launches and at other venues. It shows that alongside symbolic and economic value of a foreign literary work, its political aspects are seriously considered by the editors. The paper reveals how the broader environment of cultural control, which is not welcoming to foreign influences, as well as how contemporary diplomatic conflicts between nations, and the trade war between China and the US impact transnational flows of literature into China.