On the Misinterpretation of Literary Classics in Cross-Cultural Understanding: The Great Gatsby as A Case Study

In cross-cultural interpretation of literary classics,there is a common mistake that projects self-values and attaches them to different cultural works.This paper takes the Chinese interpretation of The Great Gatsby as an example to illustrate this phenomenon.This novel is generally regarded as a presentation of the collapse of the American Dream and a revelation of its illusory and deceptive nature.Yet these views are all specious.In effect,by rewriting the “American story”,it shows class contradictions; with the narration of the implied author,the writers political unconscious becomes the mouthpiece of bourgeois ideology.Therefore,under superficial reflection and criticism,it actually confirms the value of the American Dream.This informs us the importance of maintaining the principle of historicization in trans-cultural interpretation.