Translations (Masterplots II: Poetry, Revised Edition)
At a glance:
- Author: Wing Tek Lum
- First Published: 1987
- Type of Work: Lyric
- Genres: Poetry, Lyric poetry
- Subjects: Culture, Language or languages, Asia or Asians, Immigration or emigration, Devils or demons, Asian Americans, China or Chinese people, Chinese Americans
The Poem
“Translations” is a poem in three parts that considers the ways in which provocatively descriptive language influences and reflects attitudes toward cultural communities located outside of conventional representations of life in the United States. Speaking with the thoughtful, reflective voice that is characteristic of his work, Wing Tek Lum begins the poem with the word “Ghosts,” a focal point for an exploration of the manner in which the terminology chosen by a people to describe themselves may differ significantly from the words used by outsiders to refer to...
[The entire page is 1592 words long]
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