JOURNAL ARTICLE

"Love Thy Neighbor": Neuroculture, Fundamentalism, and the Other in Gish Jen's World and Town.

  • Published In: Canadian Review of American Studies, 2024, v. 54, n. 2. P. 192 1 of 3

  • Database: Academic Search Ultimate 2 of 3

  • Authored By: Chen, Fu-jen 3 of 3

Abstract

This article analyzes the parallax relationships of coexisting yet irreconcilable binaries—mind/body, reason/faith, and self/other—in Gish Jen’s novel *World and Town*, situated within scientific, religious, and political contexts. It examines the neurobiological divide between neuronal and mental perspectives through characters Carter and Hattie, the contrasting religious beliefs of fundamentalist Ginny, Unitarian Hattie, and postmodern cynic Carter, and the social tensions surrounding the Cambodian refugee Chhung family’s arrival in a New England town post–September 11. The article critiques Jen’s narrative strategy of emphasizing perspectival multiplicity, arguing instead for recognizing a fundamental ontological gap within the self as the basis for mutual recognition and social bonds beyond binary oppositions.

Additional Information

  • Source:Canadian Review of American Studies. 2024/08, Vol. 54, Issue 2, p192
  • Document Type:Literary Criticism
  • Subject Area:Biography
  • Publication Date:2024
  • ISSN:0007-7720
  • DOI:10.3138/cras-2024-005
  • Accession Number:179164767
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