Abstract:
Chinese scholars and students often find it difficult to break into Anglophone academia as the academic habits and writing styles can be vastly different from the paradigms they are used to. Similarly, scholars trained in Anglophone academia may find it difficult to navigate the academic job market in mainland China. Based on my own experience of publishing in English journals and working in different universities in the UK and China, I will share some tips on effective career building that would allow humanities scholars to flourish in particular local contexts and keep their transnational connections and international relevance. This sharing session will start with a summary of the major differences in modes of thinking and writing in Chinese and English and then introduce three different methods of identifying valuable and viable research projects, focusing on theme-driven, phenomenon-driven, and debate-driven interventions. Using my own publications and talks as examples, I will also share tips on engaging with academic journals and publishers, and how to navigate the post-PhD job hunting period as a junior scholar.

Biography:

Flair Donglai SHI is Associate Professor of Comparative Literature based at the School of Humanities, Shanghai Jiao Tong University. He holds a PhD in English from Oxford University and works as Associate Tutor in Translation Studies at Warwick University. His research areas include world literature theory, race and postcolonial studies, Sinophone Studies, and China-Africa cultural relations. He has published an edited book, World Literature in Motion, and many articles in international journals like Critical Comparative Studies, Translation & Literature, and Comparative Literature Studies, and on media platforms like Sixth Tone and Journal of Literature. He is currently working on his monograph entitled Yellow Peril Revisited while furthering his research on the interracial politics represented in contemporary China-Africa cultural products.