4 - The Eaton Sisters and the Figure of the Eurasian

Summary

This chapter talks about the four Eaton sisters namely Edith, Grace, Sara and Winnifred, who contest the prejudices and social injustices they saw around them, each in her own way leaving a lasting mark on the history of American letters. It pays special attention to their articulation of a distinct Eurasian voice in their texts, focusing on the works of Edith and Winnifred, who were among the earliest Eurasian writers in North America to publish on the subject of East-West interracialism. The place of the Eaton sisters in the history of North American letters, and their legacy for the struggle for equity and inclusion, are best appreciated from the multiple vantage points of Asian American studies, mixed-race studies, and women's studies. Even as the Eaton children were profoundly affected by anti-Chinese racism growing up, the early-twentieth-century rage for Orientalism provided them with a ready market for publishing.