| Abstract: | As an important aspect of fiction or narrative in general,characterization has long been a popular object for scholarly enquiries in literary studies. However,the well-known distinction into direct and indirect characterizations discursively formulated in Western literary theory may not be capable of accommodating various forms of characterization in other literatures and cultures. This article sets out to summarize and discuss the distinctive approaches to characterization in classical Chinese fiction in the triple purpose of complementing the binary distinction in the West,introducing the indigenous Chinese literary theory to Western readers,and facilitating their reading and understanding of Chinese fiction. |
