关键词: 禅, 戏拟, 嵌套叙事, 文化创伤

Abstract: “The Laughing Man” is regarded as J. D. Salinger's most mature and sophisticated work for its elaborate nested narration and bizarre story plot, in which Salinger mentions China for the first time. The core layer of the narrative of the novel is a parody of Hugo's novel L'Homme Qui Rit. The concise and trivial elements representing China such as the Chinese bandits and poppy petals, as well as China-related geographical descriptions are largely ignored by the academia. This article contends that the story contains contradictory views toward China. On the one hand, there exists a possibility of Orientalism. On the other hand, it reflects the author's trauma probably from anti-Semitism, for which the nested narration functions as a testimony. Meanwhile, Zen Buddhism helps to bridge the gap of the dichotomy that initiates that trauma.

Key words: Zen, parody, nested narration, cultural trauma