The author of six volumes of poetry, Zhai Yongming first became prominent in the mid-1980s with the publication of her twenty-poem cycle, “Woman,” a work that forcefully articulated a female point-of-view in China’s largely patriarchal society. Her powerful imagery and forthright voice resonated with many readers. Zhai has continued to hone her critique of traditional attitudes towards women, quickly becoming one of China’s foremost feminist voices and a major force in the contemporary literary scene. She is also an installationartist and prolific essayist, and stages poetry readings and other cultural events at the bar she owns in her native Chengdu.
Andrea Lingenfelter received her MA from Yale University and her PhD from the University of Washington. She is also the translator of the novels, Candy (Back Bay, 2003), Farewell to My Concubine (W. Morrow, 1993), and The Last Princess of Manchuria (Morrow, 1992). Lingenfelter currently lives in Berkeley.
The Changing Room, by Zhai Yongming
The Changing Room
Zhai Yongming
from Chinese by Andrea Lingenfelter
Poetry
ISBN 978-0-9815521-3-2 (paper)
6 x 8
163 pages [bilingual Chinese/English]