Schema and adaptation: a cognitive comparative study of nostalgic themes in the works of Edith Wharton and Eileen Chang

This article explores the nostalgia schemas in the works of Edith Wharton and Eileen Chang. It uncovers the cultural and personal factors that contribute to their divergent nostalgia through the lens of a cognitive schema. Both authors’ early nostalgic creations are dysfunctional. Wharton’s later nostalgia is adapted to embrace a modern paradigm of autonomous identity based on alternative values. Chang, however, clings to the traditional paradigm of relational identity that she cannot construct due to the complex national and personal challenges she faces. The distant intimacy constructed in Wharton’s later nostalgia schema is both a critique and redemption of her American heritage. In comparison, Chang’s rejection of reconciliation and transcendence in her later writings is more attributable to a dysfunctional nostalgia schema than a deliberate writing strategy. The analysis of the experiential space and horizon of expectation underlying Wharton’s nostalgic narratives reveals the cognitive limitations that hinder Chang’s nostalgia. Simultaneously, understanding the factors that influence Chang’s nostalgic narratives shows the significance of Wharton’s innovative interpretation of modern human relationships in her writing and life.