Date Thesis Awarded

5-2021

Access Type

Honors Thesis -- Open Access

Degree Name

Bachelors of Arts (BA)

Department

English

Advisor

Jon Pineda

Committee Members

Henry Hart

Erin Webster

Francis Tanglao Aguas

Abstract

“Purple Magpie Terrace: a Story of his and hers” is a collection of bilingual poems inspired by both the author's familial history as well as her own journey tackling the issue of cultural identity crisis. This bilingual project traces down and recreates individual recollections while also embodying events, figures and folktales among Chinese history that are constantly reimagined by different generations. The collection is divided into four parts, each being a set of narrative poems weaving the past into the present and vice versa. It is also a realistic record of the struggles that a blingual writer has to work through in order to redefine the significance of language barrier in terms of artistic expression. The text raises questions about the purpose of language yet aspires not to solve them; instead, what the readers can expect from these poems is a refreshed realization of seeing language as a souvenir and an ever-changing channel.

Recommended Citation

Yu, Zheng, "Purple Magpie Terrace: A Story of His and Hers" (2021). Undergraduate Honors Theses. William & Mary. Paper 1726.
https://scholarworks.wm.edu/honorstheses/1726