杜赞奇认为，民族“自我”大多都是相对“他者”而定义的。在晚清文人志士的自我认同和民族想象中，“西方”和“妇女”是他们指称的最多的“潜在的他者”。林纾翻译《巴黎茶花女遗事》对“西方”和“妇女”所展开的想象，不仅展现了作者书写异域文化的策略，也可让我们从中一窥晚清知识分子在倡导民族
革新的过程中，如何通过“他者”来认知“自身”。

Prasenjit Duara had pointed out that the national“self”is defined at any point in time by the other． The literati in Late Qing Dynasty，who are the major advocates of nationalist movement，they also defined national “self”mainly in line with“ther”The most frequently referred“potential other”includes “occident”and “women”．Lin Shu，one of the most famous translator in Late Qing Dynasty，his translation of La Dame aux Camélia ———Bali Chahuanü Yishi is the best illustration of the imagination of “occident”and “women”． This work not only demonstrates the author's writing strategy of exotic culture，but also allows us to glimpse the fact that how the literati in Late Qing Dynasty build up self-identity from the “other”in the progress of promoting national innovation．