San Mao and the known world
Abstract
'San Mao' was one of the most popular writers of the 1970s and 1980s in the Chinese-speaking world. This study deals with some of San Mao's best-loved stories, namely the tales set in the Sahara Desert and in Europe. It examines San Mao's portrayals of foreign countries and foreign people, and of herself in interaction with them. It endeavours to demonstrate the function of San Mao as an exemplary self for readers, and to situate the San Mao persona in relation to the world she created in her texts.