ABSTRACT
The Chinese diasporas have much to record and reflect on from their myriad trajectories of migration and settlement.1 The literary works they produce are among the important texts and subtexts capturing their memories and imaginations, apart from other artistic expressions such as art, music, and film. The literary content usually starts with a depiction of longing for their homeland, a common theme also evident in literatures by fresh migrants of other diasporas. Nevertheless, things often become increasingly complicated when concepts and forces of nationalism, citizenship, and ethnicity come into play. This is especially so for Chinese diasporas which are concurrently faced with a seemingly perennial presence of China, in many and various forms and symbols, as well as the often regulative policies and laws of the nation-states where they reside.
