“Body Writing” and “Quotidian Writing” in Contemporary Chinese Women’s Poetry, April 19 at Pitt.

The University of Pittsburgh's Department of East Asian Languages & Literatures will present Dr. Hua Huang and her talk “Body Writing” and “Quotidian Writing” in Contemporary Chinese Women’s Poetry on April 19.

The development of women’s poetry in the past forty years presents two distinct trends. One is feminist poetry writing, which is mainly expressed in body writing. The poetess seeks self-recognition, and the female body becomes a vehicle for such expressions. Because it often uses dark images such as night scenes, it is also known as “dark poetry,” represented by Zhai Yongming, Tang Yaping, Yi Lei, etc. The second tendency is quotidian writing from women’s perspectives. It deconstructs the grand narratives of nationalism and collectivism, and conveys women's feelings in life trivia. On the surface, the two styles are distinct, but they are in effect two sides of a single coin. They are essentially the manifestation of identity pursuit and self-confirmation of contemporary poetess in different directions. These poems reflect the living condition of contemporary Chinese women.

The talk starts at 12:00 pm in 4130 Posvar Hall (map) and is free and open to the public.