Title: The Dissemination and Adoption of Ethical Literary Criticism in the UK: A Perspective from the Theory of Innovasion Diffusion Abstract: The dissemination of Ethical Literary Criticism, aka ELC, in the UK is a key component of its oversea diffusion. Using the theory of innovation diffusion will help us look at the dissemination and adoption of ELC in the UK from a perspective of cross-cultural diffusion. Obviously, it has been a rather slow process. In the first stage, or the knowledge stage, The Times Literary Supplement, a major mass medium targeted at the British public, played a vital role, whereas in the second stage, or the persuasion stage, the personal relationship between Nie Zhenzhao and Galin Tihanov as well as the collaboration between Tihanov and his colleagues in the UK played a crucial role. Now, the process has reached its third stage, or the decision stage, in which Veselina Dzhumbeva and Lucia Boldrini have experimented with the ELC in their criticism of certain literary works. Key words: Ethical Literary Criticism; diffusion of innovations; Nie Zhenzhao; Galin Tihanov; intercultural communication Projects: “A Study on Theoretical Resources and International Dissemination of Ethical Literary Criticism” (21&ZD264) sponsored by the National Social Science Fund of China; Chinese Academic Translation Project “An Academic History of China’s Han Dynasty” (16WZS014) sponsored by the National Social Science Fund of China Author: Li Yinbo is Professor of intercultural communication at the Department of Journalism and Communication, School of Law, Humanities and Sociology, Wuhan University of Technology (Wuhan 430070, China), specializing in European & American literature, international & intercultural communication, Western media & cultures. Email: yinbo163cn@163.com
