Reimagining the Chinese historical canon in the prose of Anchee Min

The aim of this research is to identify the artistic mechanisms through which Anchee Min’s prose reimagines the Chinese historical canon and actualizes the conflict of interpretations of the past within the space of cultural memory. The article analyzes the memoir “Red Azalea” (1994), as well as the historical novels “Becoming Madame Mao” (2001), “Empress Orchid” (2004), and “The Last Empress” (2007) from the perspective of their interaction with the historical narrative. The scientific novelty lies in the formulation and substantiation of a model for the simultaneous functioning of mythologization and demythologization in Anchee Min’s prose: it is demonstrated that their combination leads to the creation of a “fluid” image of the historical figure. The results reveal that the synthesis of memoir traditions and the historical novel serves as a unified strategy that shifts the macro-historical perspective into the lens of personal experience. Furthermore, the specific narrative organization of the texts facilitates the creation of complex and multifaceted historical characters and presents cultural memory as a process of continuous interpretations.