Abstract
This chapter examines the poetics of Chinese Esperantist Mao Zifu 毛自富 (b. 1963–), whose Kantoj de Anteo [Songs of Anteo] (2006) is one of the rare creative outputs by Chinese Esperantists, as they mostly engage in translation between Esperanto and Chinese rather than in original Esperanto literature. Mao lived through the Cultural Revolution (1966–1976) in his childhood and early adolescence. Because of his age, class background, and place of residence, he did not directly suffer from this historical catastrophe; yet the Cultural Revolution allows for him to articulate his private shattered world since he has become disabled because of a traffic accident. This chapter explores Mao’s Esperanto poetry from the perspective of loss that lies at the core of humanity. Esperanto is a planned language designed by L. L. Zamenhof (1859–1917) to bridge linguistic differences at the turn of the twentieth century; it has developed into a means for oppressed ethnic groups to make themselves heard even if they speak a marginal language. Seen in this light, Mao cannot find a better language than Esperanto, given his marginal position and the universal, humanistic questions that he explores. More specifically, this chapter examines how Mao uses Esperanto and his wheelchair as external instruments to navigate his inner experience of loss, and how these external instruments transform into an organic part of his poetics. It argues that Mao creates an allegorical structure in his poetry that weaves together the individual and the historical, as he takes a backward glance at the Cultural Revolution through the lens of his troubled manhood.