Ken Liu’s 2016 short story “The Paper Menagerie” is a very moving and emotional story. It tells the story of a young boy and his relationship with his parents. His father was American, while his mother came from China. As he was growing up, the boy’s mother gifted him paper animals to play with. However, these toys were made fun of by his friends, which led to bullying. This caused him to begin to resent his mother. His friends had more expensive and intricate toys, so they looked down upon and made fun of the paper animals crafted by his mother. This resentment grew and grew, so as he continued to grow up, his relationship with his mother became more strained and distant. After 30 years had passed, his mother was severely ill and on the verge of death. As he rushed to the hospital to see her in her final moments, she had already passed away. A few weeks later, as he was cleaning out his mother’s old belongings, he found two things: the paper tiger that his mother made for him as a child, and his mother’s old journal. Besides containing details about his mother’s journey immigrating to the US, it also contained his mother’s thoughts about her faltering relationship with her son. The very last sentence in the journal wrote, “My son, why won’t you speak to your own mother?”
I believe this story is very representative of the story and feelings of many second generation immigrants and children of multiracial families. One’s personal identity can be very divisive and contradictory. For example, biracial children commonly ask themselves, “Are we American, or are we Chinese (or any other nationality for that matter)?” After growing up, I still don’t know the answer to this question. Furthermore, there are times and situations that lead us to choose one side or the other. For example, there are some people who do not understand the cultures of other countries, and thus can influence how somebody looks upon their own culture. This is exactly the experience told by the boy in “The Paper Menagerie”. Personally, this is an internal conflict that I have experienced many times. However, as I grew and matured, I began to realize that all aspects of life have to include balance, which is a philosophy that is very applicable to discovering identity. As a biracial child of an immigrant, I’ve come to realize that I am not solely Chinese or American. I am a Chinese-American.
Guest Speakers In fall quarter, the Chinese program invited two internationally recognized scholars to deliver two excellent speeches on Zoom to Western students and community members interested in Chinese language and culture. Professor Xuetao Li shared with us many pertinent ideas on how to conduct academic research in Sinology. Many students felt his ideas were very helpful for further MA or PHD program education planning. Additionally, Professor Yang Zhao delivered a speech mainly about the standards for how to become a professional instructor who teaches Chinese as a foreign language. He also shared important advice and tips with us about securing teaching positions in the job market. Thanks to student participation, useful tips and ideas from the guests, the talks were very successful!
Chinese Table Throughout the academic year, the Chinese program organized various Chinese Table activities. Those who are new to Chinese language and traditions found these events extremely interesting! For instance, in winter quarter, students at the beginning level were able to experience how to write Chinese characters by using ink brush and Xuan paper, and the traditional calligraphy demonstration enchanted everyone with the elegance of this Chinese cultural tradition. In fact, many students mentioned looking forward to a Chinese Calligraphy course next academic year.
Chinese Mini-Library Since January of 2023, the Chinese program has been working on the establishment of a mini-library. Chinese language books will be available to Chinese majors, minors and any other language learners. Instructors of all levels in the Chinese program will also assign students some reading homework with book reports or reviews so that these books will be better utilized.
同学们在CCC学怎么打麻将 Students learning to play Mahjong at CCC
Chinese Conversation Club (CCC) Events Each quarter, CCC events and workshops are held regularly by students with the support and assistance of Chinese faculty members. This club offers a chance for students to review what they learn and a place to participate in more cultural activities. All events thus far have had enormous positive benefits for students’ studies.
Chinese Food Culture Week In fall quarter, the Chinese students learned a lot about food culture during Food Culture Week that they would not have learned in class. Before a food tasting event, the teachers assigned homework to encourage the students to research more about the history, characteristics, and schools of Chinese cuisine in advance. Then, during the event the students applied what they learned in practice by asking relevant, impromptu questions, many of which were related to the occupation of early Chinese immigrants and the current climate of the American food service industry. The culture and language behind the Chinese food also gave students a deeper understanding of the history of China and encouraged them to further immerse themselves in their Chinese studies in and outside of the classrooms.
同学们跟随陈淑光教授学习中国画 Students follow along with Professor Chen’s instruction
Guest Artist Events In winter quarter, the Chinese program and Chinese Conversation Club organized an art workshop. We invited Professor Shuguang Chen of Shandong University of Arts and Design, who delivered a presentation introducing the history of Chinese watercolor painting to both Chinese majors and minors, as well as faculty members and visitors. He then taught all participants via Zoom call how to do watercolor painting. The workshop participants were very successful in their learning, and many students became even more interested in traditional Chinese arts.
苏老师给学生讲解年兽的传说 Professor Su tells students the legend of Nian
一年级的学生邱文颢和邱舞医 First year students Nevaeh Qiu and Wuyi Walters
Chinese New Year Celebration The Chinese New Year, also known as the Spring Festival or Lunar New Year, is the most important holiday in Chinese culture and is celebrated by millions of people worldwide. In winter quarter of 2023, the Chinese program held its annual New Year Celebration to celebrate the tradition and the progress of all Chinese majors and minors. Many students who are interested in Chinese also joined the event. This was the first face-to-face gathering since Covid started three years ago. The entire faculty membership worked with student volunteers to successfully organize the event this year. We invited the department chair of MCL, Professor Shannon Dubenion-Smith to deliver the opening remarks, and Chinese faculty head Professor Julian Wu announced program development plans to everyone. Everyone was excited about the upcoming Chinese magazine, spring field trips, activities of Chinese Conversation Club, the establishment of a Chinese mini-library, faculty-led summer study abroad program, etc. Students of all levels performed a variety of great shows, including Chinese songs, skits, dancing, poem recitation, tongue twisters, a talk show, and many others. This event not only provided a good exposure for the Chinese language program and Chinese culture on campus, but also greatly enhanced the confidence of teachers and students in the importance of their achievements. This event provided an opportunity for cultural exchange and understanding, as well as the promotion of cultural diversity. It also allowed participants to learn from each other, share their own study experience and cultural traditions, and build cross-cultural connections.
Claudia Liu刘海燕
Claudia Liu, Language Instructor of Chinese, holds two M.A. degrees in the fields of linguistics (University of Washington U.S., and Newcastle University, U.K). Her research interests include: teaching Chinese as a foreign language, second language acquisition, and multilingualism. As a talented professional with more than 20 years of teaching experience, her passion for teaching and love of language make her classes a joy to attend.
上图 油画 《紫调系列—瓶花》 Oil Painting “Purple Series- Flowers in Vases”
Translation
Lili Zhang, born in Dezhou, Shandong Province, China, is a distinguished artist specializing in landscape sketching and oil painting. She has been working as an instructor teaching and researching environmental design at the College of Fine Arts of Dezhou University since 2007. As a versatile artist, Lili Zhang’s works include a wide range of subjects from still life to people, and landscapes, demonstrating her grasp of delicate emotions and rich subtext.
Professor Zhang developed a strong interest in painting from a young age. After years of study and research, she became proficient in traditional Chinese painting as well as oil painting, sketching and watercolor. This enables her to freely move between Eastern and Western styles in her art, skillfully blending the two painting traditions to create unique pieces.
Professor Zhang’s works have been exhibited in multiple Chinese art exhibitions and have received numerous honors, such as the Gold Award in the Shandong Fine Arts Competition (Oil Painting category) of Art Schools. These awards not only reflect her outstanding achievements in the field of painting but also highlight her contribution to the promotion and development of Eastern and Western art traditions.
As a painter with a global view, Professor Zhang demonstrates the value of cultural communication between China and the West through her works. Her pieces breathe new life into traditional Chinese painting and showcase the beautiful fusion of Eastern and Western art styles to the world.
The characteristics of Chinese painting have had a profound impact on her creations. The artworks of Fengmian Lin in particular inspired her in form and line, guiding her to create paintings such as “Leisure”. In the sketch “Autumn Mountain”, the layers of space, the density of lines, and the creation of visual focal points in the picture all reflect the painter’s deep understanding and delicate interpretation of composition, modeling, and brushwork. Her impressive oil painting “Flower Season” demonstrates the spontaneity characteristic of traditional Chinese painting, combined with the rigor of Western painting composition.
Editorial Team
本文由与艺术家合作的编辑小组成员共同完成。 Written by the editorial team in partnership with the artist.
Artist 张莉莉 Lili Zhang Born: 1980 Nationality: Chinese Artistic Fields: Oil Painting, Decorative Art
When I was young, I looked forward to listening to the CD of “Happy Three Kingdoms” by Hou Wenyong and Cai Kangyong before going to bed. They told the story of The Romance of the Three Kingdoms in a modern, humorous, and witty style of dialogue. At that time, my Chinese was not good enough to read Luo Guanzhong’s The Romance of the Three Kingdoms directly, and I was not interested in history, but I had a great time listening to the story.
When I grew up and studied Chinese diligently, the first out of the four Chinese classics I wanted to read was The Romance of the Three Kingdoms. In the process of reading, I was very impressed by the distinctive characters. Liu Bei who wanted to revive the Han Dynasty, Sun Quan who managed the south of the Yangtze River at a young age, and Cao Cao who was the villain in the book “Holding the Emperor to Order the Dukes”. But my favorite character is still Zhuge Liang. He played a very important role during the Battle of Chibi. Whether it was in “Straw Boat Borrowing Arrows” or “Zhou Yu’s three angers”, I understood that no matter what era you are in, having mastery of knowledge is especially important. Liu Bei has many talented generals willing to follow him, but he still needs Zhuge Liang, who devised the strategy to divide China into three.
From reading The Romance of the Three Kingdoms, I deeply understand the importance of having both knowledge and physical power in Chinese culture. When talking about The Romance of the Three Kingdoms, it is impossible not to discuss the remarkable “Battle of Chibi”. Whether it is politics or business, both rely upon forming alliances, just like Liu Bei and Sun Quan, two partners who were initially overlooked by Cao Cao. They were able to defeat Cao Cao, despite his million-strong army through a combination of Zhuge Liang’s intelligence, Zhou Yu’s water warfare skills, Liu Bei’s talented generals and Huang Gai’s bravery. How could Cao Cao’s ragtag army of defectors, assembled from different places, ever compete with them?
First, “Straw boat borrowing arrows” reduced Cao Cao’s resources, followed by Huang Gai’s “taking the pain to gain trust”, and finally Zhuge Liang’s miraculous skills borrowed the east wind to defeat Cao’s army. This series of chain tricks made me sympathize with Cao Cao. On Huarong Road, Luo Guanzhong arranged for the virtuous and righteous Guan Yu to let Cao Cao go, not only making Guan Yu’s character more distinct, but also ending the Battle of Chibi in a peaceful manner.
Luo Guanzhong not only vividly portrays each character, but also perfectly describes the love and hatred of each character. The works of Hou Wenyong and Cai Kangyong allow the audience to reflect back and forth between history and modern times. Liu Bei’s leadership style of winning people over with virtue ensured the loyalty of the five Tiger generals, which is still applicable in modern society. Liu Bei’s morality is representative of the morals shared by many Chinese people. Guan Yu’s loyalty can also embody Chinese culture very well. It is a Chinese virtue not to beat a drowning dog, but instead to remember kindness. Thanks to TheRomance of the Three Kingdoms, not only did I learn history, but also deeply understood the profoundness of Chinese culture.
In my opinion, calligraphy is one of the most neglected art forms among westerners who appreciate art. Many foreigners think calligraphy is just writing, but on the contrary, this beautiful art has many complex aspects. Contrary to some western points of view, it is not just “words that have been written on paper”.
Calligraphy involves 4 main instrument: stone (砚）, paper（纸）, ink（墨）, and brush（笔）. Depending on the situation, these four tools change to best suit the goals of the calligrapher; how much ink the brush should have, what color paper to use, how dark or light the ink should be, how fast is the movement of the hand, etc. Regardless of personal style, every single calligraphy composition has 3 parts: main text（正文）, inscription（题词）, and a seal stamp （图章/章）. In addition to having these three parts, each part’s content and composition have rules pertaining to their use. There are also four main calligraphy scripts: Seal script （篆书）, clerical script （隶书）, regular script (楷书), and cursive script （草书）. Calligraphers can also create their own style, such as Emperor Huizong’s “Slender Gold” style. In addition, people sometimes use calligraphy to create new languages or new ways of writing, such as “Nüshu” or Calligrapher Xu Bing’s “Square Word Calligraphy“; a method to write English that is inspired by Chinese calligraphy. Not only is calligraphy an art form, but it can reflect historical or societal changes, and the calligraphy style changes through several centuries proves this point.
Making good looking calligraphy is an extremely difficult task. Posture, breath, or getting distracted can all influence the most important calligraphy feature: balance. It takes many years of practice to reach the level of calligraphers like Li Bai (李白) or Su Shi (苏轼). Although some might see the calligraphy of Zhang Xu (张旭), otherwise known as “Crazy Zhang”, and think it is ugly calligraphy, in order to have such beautiful strokes, one must have a fast, steady hand. If I wanted to have Wang Xizhi’s (王羲之) perfectly beautiful calligraphy skills, in spite of me already having more than two years of experience, I would have to practice for many more years to finally attain that level of “perfectly beautiful” skill.
Since my graduation rapidly approaches, I’ve recently been reflecting back on my memories as a WWU student, especially those in the Chinese major courses. It goes without saying that one of my most treasured memories in Chinese major courses was learning about calligraphy’s history and art. Not only did I learn how to write calligraphy and its history, but calligraphy also taught me many rare and precious lessons.
In order to love and care for oneself, one must find time in their busy life for relaxation. When one is very anxious, they must relax their tense body, and take a big breath. Achieving perfection is nearly impossible, so giving an all out effort is good enough; one should enjoy their effort, and value their short and precious time. Finally, sometimes calligraphy and such things may appear simple; those with a limited outlook or experience mistakenly think it is merely Chinese words that have been written on paper, but on the contrary, they have hidden complexities.
Laura’s Calligraphy Gallery | 王劳拉的书法美术馆
女书书法、水彩画蝴蝶 | Nüshu Calligraphy & Chinese Watercolor Butterfly
This is the first time I have tried to write Nüshu characters. It was only two words, “女书”, but having to steadily write the curved letters with only the tip of a calligraphy brush and while using seal script technique was still difficult. Surprisingly, trying to paint a beautiful, colorful butterfly was about as challenging as writing two decent looking Nüshu characters. In the end, whole process of trying to write Nüshu myself made me respect Nüshu writings and Jiangyong women even more. The reason for painting a butterfly is that some characteristics from Nüshu and sworn sisterhood culture intersect with some Chinese symbolism for the butterfly; freedom, love, hope, rebirth, longevity, among other things.
The calligraphy reads “女书“ from left to right, so you can compare the style to the regular style inscription below
山林多奇采水彩画 | “How Resplendent are the Forested Mountains” Watercolor Painting
Laura‘s (郑月）Chinese Watercolor Painting. I used an excerpt from the Midnight Songs Poetry; “How resplendent are the forested mountains”. This is my first time making a Chinese watercolor composition. I learned how at Professor Shuguang Chen’s Watercolor Painting Workshop.
I wrote this composition on Lunar New Year 2023. I based the rabbit off a stock image calligraphy rabbit I found online. Inside the bunny it says “lucky rabbit”. A more fitting adjective may have had two syllables, but this method has more balance.
Poet Li Bai of the Tang Dynasty: “Viewing the Waterfall at Mount Lu”, written by Laura Wagner
Sunlight shining on “Incense Burner Peak” (Mount Xianghu) emits a violet smoke. From a distance, I watch this waterfall like a river hung before me. The flying waters drop 3000 feet straight down. I mistook it for the Milky Way fallen from the highest heaven.
This is a calligraphy I wrote in April of 2022. My job was the ASWWU VP for Sustainability. Last year I led and managed the planning for a whole week of celebrations of Earth Day at Western Washington University. Our theme was to center BIPOC experiences with the environment.
The first Earth Day event was a keynote speaker event on Monday where Indigenous people came to speak about their relationship with the environment. One of the esteemed guest groups was Children of the Setting Sun Productions. My coworker, Naira, and I gave them gifts to thank them for coming to Western Washington University to speak, in addition to compensating them. I wrote them this calligraphy as a gift. Professor Wu helped me choose this poem about nature and it took 9 hours of writing before finally having the finished product.
Main text: “Anika”. Inscriptions include: 2021, Spring of 2021, “Sweetheart”- her nickname
I made this in March 2021. My childhood cat suddenly grew very sick and passed away. She had a happy, comfortable life and we loved her. I consider this calligraphy work a way to honor her life. The piece is her name “Anika” sound translated into Chinese and written in the four main Chinese scripts: seal, cursive, regular, and running script. In official calligraphy, one is not supposed to write names as calligraphy in the main text, but I broke the rules to memorialize her.
Main Text: From The Analects- “To review the old and learn the new is to learn the past and understand the future”
Inscription: “Father (who it is for), 2020, Zheng Yue, Happy Father’s Day.”
My dad has been a math teacher for many years, so I chose this father’s day gift and analects quote because it fits his profession and love for math and history very well. The reason I chose clerical script to write my dad’s gift was because it has a geometric structure and would make my dad feel content. He hung this composition on his wall.
From the Analects: ”Learning without thought is labor lost, thought without learning is dangerous.“ Inscription: Zheng Yue, 2020, spring, Bellingham
My first time writing a large calligraphy piece in 2020. My mom hung it on the wall at her house. This is seal script. You can see I didn’t have a seal stamp yet. It won a calligraphy award from Janet Xing! I was very proud. I really enjoy looking at this piece. It makes me remember one of my favorite classes among all the Chinese major courses (calligraphy). Furthermore, it reminds me how far I have come.
Laura Wagner
Laura is a 5th year 2023 graduating double major of Environmental Science and Chinese Language and Culture. She is also the 2023 Outstanding Graduating Senior in Chinese Language and Culture. On the one hand, Laura really enjoys the WWU community and student opportunities, so she doesn’t want to go. But on the other, she is excited yet nervous to start post-grad life. Some of her passions include Chinese calligraphy, cooking, outdoor recreating, swimming, learning about equity and justice issues, and dressing up (in the author picture, she wears a vintage Western (cowboy) inspired outfit for graduation pictures). As a story editor, she hopes you enjoy Mirror Magazine and regards it as her final undergrad “passion project”.
2022年台灣國際熱氣球嘉年華 2022 Taiwan International Hot Air Balloon Festival游在茶叶田里 Roaming in a tea field朋友的眼睛是最好的鏡子 The best mirror is a friend’s eyes“馬老師”用英文教學，告訴她的學生她夏天做了什麼 “Teacher Madsen” teaches in English, telling her students what she did over the Summer
Translation
Lessons from Teaching
Before I went to Taiwan to teach, I had actually never done any formal teaching work! I had similar experiences, but I had no classroom experience at all. I was really nervous at first to teach in a public elementary school. Have you ever heard of “imposter syndrome”? In such a new environment, with grand expectations from the principal and the director, of course I felt like an imposter. If you have never heard of imposter syndrome, it makes you think like this: “What qualifications do I really have to teach at this school?”
However, the good news is that because I knew that I couldn’t teach perfectly at the beginning, I realized the most important thing was to just try. By watching other teachers’ methods and through my own ideas, I gradually cultivated my own teaching ability. In fact, I even became a popular foreign teacher within the Education Bureau. These two years turned out to be the biggest period of growth in my life. I am not only extremely proud of myself, but I also know that I can use this experience as motivation to continue to learn and grow in the future. No matter what, I know it is inevitable to make mistakes along this journey. However, because of my teaching experience in Taiwan, I am no longer as afraid of making mistakes as I was before. Instead, I am even more willing to try things I haven’t done before.
How to Adapt?
When I flew to Taoyuan Airport, I immediately discovered that when it comes to learning a language, there are many regional differences. For example, when I was looking for a taxi, I couldn’t find the correct sign, and quickly realized that there is another word for taxi in Taiwan. In my opinion, it is most respectful to emulate the local accent and expressions where you live. It also helps you adapt as quickly as possible. Once when I was in a taxi, the driver looked back and was surprised to see a foreigner. Though I had only lived there for about 6 months, due to my accent, he mistakenly thought I was a local.
Even after being in Taiwan for more than 9 months, I continued to learn dialectical differences. When I was buying breakfast, I suddenly discovered that the Taiwanese word for potatoes is also different. I nearly laughed myself to death, but you have to remember: you don’t know everything! There will always be room to learn new things. Fun fact: even among speakers of the same language, there are regional dialectical differences. I’m learning more and more about this now living in New Zealand. There are so many English words and phrases that seem odd to me. I once asked myself “What is ‘rubbish’? Can I not say ‘trash” or ‘garbage’?” I found that the word “rubbish” is similar to Taiwan’s way of saying “garbage”! (Did you know? The pronunciation of “garbage” in Taiwan is lèsè, and not lājī, though the characters are the same.)
Remember to Speak!
When I lived in Taiwan for two years, not only did I make progress with the language, but I also learned a lot of life lessons. You might be wondering what my biggest lesson was? It’s that you need to be willing to experience things. Put simply, I think you should learn not to be discouraged when you don’t know something. Of course, you still have to remember the vocabulary you have learned, or maybe even preview vocab first! The important point is that it is easy to forget how to use new knowledge without connecting it in real, everyday life application. Do the brave thing and try to connect with real people to try to use these new words. In my experience, Taiwanese people are especially patient and willing to listen.
Actually, I have not been seriously studying these past two years. Instead, I have focused on improving my speaking ability. Because I forced myself to go outside and speak with real people every day, the result was that my self confidence and communication skills improved greatly over time. After speaking mainly Chinese for so long and having improved so much, my family came to visit me in Taiwan and I “played translator” for them. Suddenly I was challenged when I needed to quickly translate at a high level from Chinese to English. I even, at some moments, forgot what language I was speaking. This certainly caused many amusing moments!
Believe in Your Ability
Finally, it’s a simple fact that the more you do something the easier it gets. So trust that the experience will teach you a lesson, whether that be in life, career, or language. Remember that it’s the people you meet along the way that make up that experience. It’s only because of them that you have this opportunity to learn.
Emma Madsen
Emma is a 2020 graduate of Western Washington University’s Chinese Program, former International and Study Abroad program participant, and former Chinese Conversation Club leader. Since her graduation, she has taught English in Taiwan for about two years, explored the country and the culture in her free time, and made many friends. Her time teaching English very recently concluded and she is now travelling the world, visiting places like New Zealand, Nepal, and Malaysia.
This is the question I recently posed to my class of middle schoolers. I received a variety of answers including: “So I can talk to my grandparents,” “So I can make friends when I travel to China,” “So I can be a translator when I grow up,” or even, “Because my friends take Chinese and I want to spend time with them.” I was surprised — every answer was so different! As an educator, it’s important to me that each lesson is catered to the interests and needs of the students. With so many answers and perspectives, I thought: “How can I serve their interests if they are all interested in different things?”
Kendall hikes at Mount Huashan in China
I spent a lot of time pondering the class’s responses. After deeper inspection, I realized that there actually was a common theme among each reply: community. This pattern is not unique to my middle school Chinese learners. In the mid 1990’s, as the importance of having multilingual citizens was becoming more and more evident, the US decided to create national standards for what students should know and be able to do in world language. A task force of language education experts created 11 standards which were proven by research to be the most beneficial to students’ comprehension and communicative capabilities in world language. These standards were then compiled into the Standards for Foreign Language Learning: Preparing for the 21st Century. In this text the 11 standards are broken down into five goal areas called the Five Cs: Communication, Comparisons, Connections, Culture, and Community (ACTFL 2023). Four of the five goal areas can be found in classroom textbooks. The only one that is impossible to learn from a textbook is the goal of Community.
My students’ reasons for learning Chinese reflect the research that says being part of a language community motivates learners. Shrum and Glisan note in the Teacher’s Handbook: Contextualized Language Instruction that: “…developing communities among learners in the classroom can complement learners’ work within the larger school community and in communities beyond the school.” (Shrum and Gilsan, p.381) Having a language community to rely on gives students consistent, authentic opportunities to practice their skills. Additionally, a language community can act as a support when experiencing challenges. Just as being part of a community helps students develop and maintain their language skills, lacking a language community is a frequent contributing factor for learners giving up on their language journey. Much to the dismay of a certain infamous green owl, apps and independent study will never be optimal language learning settings because of their inherent lack of community engagement.
So, what does this mean? At the end of the day, grammar and vocabulary can only take you so far. What is so special about Chinese is the exact thing you can’t learn from cramming, and that which cannot be demonstrated on a final exam. As Chinese learners, in addition to learning the language, we are challenged with the unique task of finding our community. As a current Western student, now is your time to build your community: go to the Chinese Communication Club, meet Chinese students at the tutoring center, go on field trips with your classmates to Dragon Well, or the Richmond night market. Do whatever activities inspire you to find and bond with your Chinese language community.
Kendall Kracke has been learning Chinese for 8 years. She is a WWU alumna, the 2019 Outstanding Graduating Senior in Chinese Language and Culture, and the 2021 Chinese Bridge World Champion. She is currently a Teacher Candidate in the Secondary Dual Educator Program at Portland State University and is on track to be licensed to teach Special Education and Chinese Language at the secondary levels upon graduation. She plans to study Chinese Language at Beijing University next year.
Throughout Chinese history, its people have cared about the concept of “unity”. However, because China is so vast, historical sources do not often discuss many ethnic minorities or regional issues that conflict with this concept of “unity”. Ever since the 5th Century BC, Confucianism has had a huge influence. Because Confucian scholars value men, and also influenced academic thinking, government, and the people, historians did not often research women’s experiences. Furthermore, in Chinese history, scholars were usually closely related to the court or royal family. This reality excluded the stories and lives of rural people. In this way, scholars only recently found “女书/ Nüshu”; a type of calligraphy and language that only those who are women in Hunan, Jiangyong can understand when spoken or written.
Nüshu is a syllable phonetic script in the Chinese dialect developed in Hunan, Jiangyong, but scholars don’t know what era Nüshu started. Although Jiangyong people have many myths explaining how Nüshu came into being, these myths all have some shared details; it was a very talented girl who created Nüshu. She combined embroidery, reading, and writing methods to create her works. The appearance of Nüshu is characterized by the rhombus-shaped overall outline of the characters, beautiful and delicate handwriting, and unique shape, so it is also called “long-legged mosquito” writing. The forms to use Nüshu include: “three dynasties books”, “fan songs” (writing secret songs in a folding fan), “paper books”, and “letter script”. Some Nüshu are embroidered on handkerchiefs, which are called “embroidered characters”. Most of the content describes local marriage and families, social interactions, secret grievances and personal affairs, rural anecdotes, folksongs and riddles of Han women, etc.
Image 1: Paper Books and Fan SongsImage 2: Embroidered Nüshu characters
Examples of Fan Songs:
With painted eggs they go to announce the engagement, The man’s family is delighted, but I’m miserable. My birth certificate locked in the bottom of his cabinet, 800 strings of silver could not redeem it. I’m fed up with my parents for promising me to the wrong man, And fed up with the man too, For being the wrong match for me!
-“Nushu: A Hidden Language of Women in China” Jiangyong woman, documentary translation of Fan Song
As a girl, the good times put you on top of the world, As a wife, the “good times” are when tears flow down.
-“Nushu: A Hidden Language of Women in China” Jiangyong woman, documentary translation of Fan Song
“Sworn Sisters” are more or less best friends for life. The process of becoming “sworn sisters” usually had similar ceremonies as marriage. Sworn sisters are the only ones who could use Nüshu to communicate with each other. This sisterhood had a number of matters that only included them, that is to say, Jiangyong’s sworn sisters had societal rules that prevented men from participating. In Confucian or male-focused societies, especially in rural areas, forced marriages are common. However, in the countryside, misogyny can be dangerous; in the past, rural women often had tiny, bound feet, and walking was so excruciating that they had no way to comfortably leave their house. They couldn’t read “men’s writing” (the Chinese language), received no education, and sometimes had no happiness in forced marriages. Additionally, if the husband abused the wife, there was no way to get divorced or find help. Therefore, sworn sisterhood was a safe group: women could come to share hardships and share joys. They could talk honestly about their feelings and secrets without worrying that men would understand their handwriting or their speaking and fan songs.
In addition to the two women in the sworn sisterhood, their families could also receive benefits from sworn sisterhood. A man in the documentary said that if one family and another had a very beneficial relationship in the past, then a marriage would be arranged before they were born (Yang, 2006). If the children of both families turned out to be the same gender, they could become sworn sisters or brothers, and then the family would receive the same benefits.
To non-Chinese people, this “sworn sisterhood” relationship is still very interesting. 12 years ago, Leila Rupp wrote a book called “Sapphistries” (a portmanteau of “sapphic” and “histories”). Its content discusses the written evidence of sapphic relationships throughout world history, so it includes sworn sisterhood. She cites historical information from various sources to argue that if Jiangyong had a way for women to “marry” women, then why couldn’t “sworn sisters” not only include a friendship or mutual protection, but also sometimes have a romantic relationship? In addition to this example, Lisa See, an American, also wrote a book about sworn sisterhood and Nüshu in 2005; “Snow Flower and the Secret Fan”. Most recently, Violet Du Feng and Qing Zhao, two Chinese Americans, directed a documentary about how modern Chinese women preserve the Nüshu traditions; “Hidden Letters”.
In 1949, China gave new freedoms to women, but the government soon tried to abolish Nüshu and customs associated with it. According to the 2006 documentary, the government discovered Nüshu in the 1950s or 1960s, and because they did not understand it spoken or written, they thought it was a secret espionage code. According to a man in the Nüshu documentary, in the 1960s, many soldiers stole hundreds of thousands of Nüshu three dynasty books, fan songs, paper books, and letters and burned them at the side of the river (Yang, 2006). In 1982, Professor Zhebing Gong argued that Nüshu is a legitimate written language, but scholars disagreed. Some scholars said that one condition for identifying written language is that it is widely used in society, but because Jiangyong women are the only group who use it, scholars said people cannot regard Nüshu as a “written language”. Some scholars also believed that Nüshu characters were “witchcraft symbols”. In 1985, Zhebing Gong took his thesis to Beijing, and scholars finally agreed that Nüshu was actually a written language. Even though the original Nüshu women are long gone, it seems that both scholars and this current generation feel that as one of the world’s most unique languages, Nüshu deserves special preservation.
Due to Confucianism and patriarchy, scholars did not previously respect Nüshu, and Chinese sources for a long time did not mention Nüshu, women’s experiences, or rural life. However, both Nüshu and sworn sisterhood reflect the hardships and joys of rural Chinese women throughout several eras. In the most difficult times, women created an entire new language and created a small, safe community to protect themselves and the next generation. After enduring through generations of pain, Jiangyong women have created a legacy of resilience and beauty.
Laura Wagner
Laura is a 5th year 2023 graduating double major of Environmental Science and Chinese Language and Culture. She is also the 2023 Outstanding Graduating Senior in Chinese Language and Culture. On the one hand, Laura really enjoys the WWU community and student opportunities, so she doesn’t want to go. But on the other, she is excited yet nervous to start post-grad life. Some of her passions include Chinese calligraphy, cooking, outdoor recreating, swimming, learning about equity and justice issues, and dressing up (in the author picture, she wears a vintage Western (cowboy) inspired outfit for graduation pictures). As a story editor, she hopes you enjoy Mirror Magazine and regards it as her final undergrad “passion project”.
Yang, Y.-Q., Young, A., East-West Film Enterprise., & Contemporary Arts Media (Firm). (2006). Nu shu: A hidden language of women in China. South Melbourne, Vic: Contemporary Arts Media.
After many months of hard work from the editing team, Mirror Magazine, Western Washington University’s first ever Chinese-English bilingual publication, was finally officially released May 17, 2023 in print.
Thanks to our 2023 sponsor Confucius Institute of Washington (CIWA), we were able to print about 100 copies of the Spring Edition magazine. Even though this is a groundbreaking first print, the limited number means that due to the low supply and high demand, the print copies that we can share outside of the Chinese program, some college and department figureheads, and some contributors, are very sparse. However, we remain optimistic that in the Fall, with a renewed budget, we can print more copies. To help increase the accessibility of this innovative magazine and to mitigate the issue of few print editions versus community demand, uploaded here is an electronic version of Mirror Magazine for your viewing pleasure. Additionally, web optimized digital versions of selected Spring Edition articles will be released in the coming weeks.
We are immensely grateful for our sponsor, all the contributors to this first edition, and support from faculty and students in our Chinese program and MCL department. Enjoy the e-version of Mirror Magazine!
