Abstract: Chinese American literature has come into the view of mainstream American literary writing since 1980s， which made its cultural function and critical discourses distinct from that under traditional ethnic researches. In the system of national literature， Chinese American literary ethnicity was labeled as heterogeneity that could be correlated with other cultural groups， and it was attached to the significance of building pluralistic American community imagination. However， in the national discourses that continuously negotiated between pluralism and unification， Chinese American literature was inevitably forced into consistent mainstream ideas， and it was evaluated by linguistic correctness， cooperation with traditional literary classics and popular cultural quality. As a result， Chinese American literature was actually marginalized as Other in national representation.

Key words: Chinese American literature, American literature, national community, Other