‘I want to settle down in China’: Charlie’s (dis)investments in Chinese and identity negotiation across times and spaces

Abstract

To date the research narrative about L2 identities has been dominated by studies on English language learning in the Anglosphere and very little existing empirical work situates the Global South as a point of departure to explore aspirations for learning languages other than English amongst international students and migrants. This article adopts a context- and time-sensitive approach to investigating a Syrian student – Charlie’s (dis)investments in Chinese as an L2 and identity negotiation in a range of social spaces (i.e. the classroom, everyday encounters and workplace) and at different points in time. Findings reveal that contextual complexities, the perceived likelihood of yielding profitable returns and visions of the future in mediating individual’s concomitant investment, learning trajectories and identity formation. The article also details the dynamics of power relations that either constrained L2 opportunities, or enhanced possibilities for human agency, social interaction and self-expression. At the end of the article, I argue for the imperativeness of exploring with L2 learners which language programs, courses, activities and support may offer them the greatest opportunity to engage with the target language and claim desirable identities in the Chinese context and beyond.

Keywords:

• China
• Chinese language
• imagined community
• imagined identity
• language investment
• L2 identity

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1 International students enrolled in Chinese universities cannot get a work permit and it is illegal to work full-time or part-time while studying in China. They can only seek internship opportunities as the policy states (Please see https://www.visaforchina.cn/globle/).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Ministry of Education of the People’s Republic of China – Humanities and Social Sciences Research Youth Foundation [grant number: 23YJC740078] and Shanghai Pujiang Talent Program [grant number: 23PJC067].