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Download PDF - UCR Magazine - University of California, Riverside

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An Anatomy <strong>of</strong> Chinese: Rhythm,<br />

Metaphor, Politics<br />

By Perry Link<br />

Harvard <strong>University</strong> Press<br />

January 2013, 376 pages<br />

During the Cultural<br />

Revolution, Mao exhorted the<br />

Chinese people to “smash the four<br />

olds”: old customs, old culture, old<br />

habits and old ideas. Yet when the<br />

Red Guards in Tiananmen Square<br />

chanted, “We want to see Chairman<br />

Mao,” they unknowingly used a<br />

classical rhythm that dates back to<br />

the Han period and is the very<br />

embodiment <strong>of</strong> the four olds. “An<br />

Anatomy <strong>of</strong> Chinese” reveals how<br />

rhythms, conceptual metaphors<br />

and political language convey<br />

time-honored meanings <strong>of</strong> which<br />

Chinese speakers themselves may<br />

not be consciously aware and<br />

contribute to the ongoing debate<br />

over whether language shapes<br />

thought, or vice versa.<br />

Inquiry into the workings <strong>of</strong><br />

Chinese reveals convergences and<br />

divergences with English, most<br />

strikingly in the area <strong>of</strong> conceptual<br />

metaphor. Particularly provocative<br />

is Link’s consideration <strong>of</strong> how<br />

Indo-European languages, with<br />

their preference for abstract nouns,<br />

generate philosophical puzzles that<br />

Chinese, with its preference for<br />

verbs, avoids. The mind-body<br />

problem that has plagued Western<br />

culture may be fundamentally less<br />

problematic for speakers <strong>of</strong><br />

Chinese.<br />

Perry Link is a distinguished<br />

pr<strong>of</strong>essor <strong>of</strong> comparative<br />

literature and foreign languages<br />

at <strong>UCR</strong>.<br />

Senegal Taxi (Camino del Sol)<br />

By Juan Felipe Herrera<br />

<strong>University</strong> <strong>of</strong> Arizona Press<br />

March 2013, 128 pages<br />

“I wish I could find the words<br />

to tell you the story <strong>of</strong> our village<br />

after you were killed.” So begins<br />

“Senegal Taxi,” the new work by<br />

one <strong>of</strong> contemporary poetry’s most<br />

vibrant voices, Juan Felipe Herrera.<br />

Known for his activism and writings<br />

that bring attention to oppression<br />

and injustice, Herrera turns to<br />

stories <strong>of</strong> genocide and hope in<br />

Sudan. “Senegal Taxi” <strong>of</strong>fers the<br />

voices <strong>of</strong> three children escaping<br />

the horrors <strong>of</strong> war in Africa.<br />

“Senegal Taxi” weaves<br />

together verse, dialogue and visual<br />

art created by Herrera specifically<br />

for the book. Phantom-like<br />

televisions, mud drawings, witness<br />

testimonies, insects and weaponry<br />

are all storytellers that join the<br />

siblings for a theatrical crescendo.<br />

Each poem is told from a different<br />

point <strong>of</strong> view, which Herrera calls<br />

“mud drawings,” referring to the<br />

evocative symbols <strong>of</strong> hope the<br />

children create as they hide in a<br />

cave on their way to Senegal, where<br />

they plan to catch a boat to the<br />

United States.<br />

Juan Felipe Herrera is a<br />

pr<strong>of</strong>essor <strong>of</strong> creative writing at<br />

<strong>UCR</strong>. He is currently the<br />

<strong>California</strong> poet laureate.<br />

Join <strong>UCR</strong> alumni<br />

in your area for<br />

a fun evening<br />

<strong>of</strong> casual<br />

conversation and<br />

refreshments,<br />

and welcome<br />

the new Class <strong>of</strong><br />

2013 alumni!<br />

M E E T<br />

M I N G L E<br />

NETWORK<br />

CONNECT<br />

Hosted by the <strong>UCR</strong><br />

Alumni Association,<br />

members in<br />

attendance will<br />

receive a gift and<br />

a chance to win<br />

two tickets to the<br />

Hollywood Bowl<br />

or Del Mar Races<br />

alumni events.<br />

Save the date for the event in your area!<br />

Los Angeles . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7/11<br />

<strong>Riverside</strong> . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7/17<br />

Orange County . . . . . . . . . . . . 7/24<br />

San Francisco . . . . . . . . . . . . 7/30<br />

The event is free for all alumni to attend.<br />

Registration required. Sign up at<br />

alumni.ucr.edu/meetgreet or call 951-827-2586.<br />

<strong>UCR</strong> Spring 2013 | 29

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