Nothing & Still Breathing: Occupying Space through Ocean Vuong’s Poetry Restricted; Files Only

Abstract

For Asian American poets, the notion of ‘occupying space’ in the literary canon comes with a complex history of marginalization and erasure. Not only do Asian American writers face the pressure of a dominant narrative force, but they also work against what poet Marilyn Chin as “a fear and loathing of poetry,” leading to a dearth of academic and mass media attention to the field. This thesis aims to understand the historical and social forces that have shaped Asian American poetry and apply that understanding to contemporary poet Ocean Vuong’s two collections: Night Sky with Exit Wounds and Time is a Mother. I examine the roles and characteristics that Asian American poets have taken on through their work over time, as well as the specific trajectory of Vuong’s work in how he occupies space in the literary mainstream. Additionally, in Chapter 2, I build on data collected for Asian American prose writers from Long Le-Khac and Kate Hao by documenting trends in how 199 prominent Asian American poets appear in The New York Times, examining patterns by poet, ethnicity, gender, time, and education. In doing so, a few key terms emerge, consistent with data for Asian American prose writers: while Asian American poetry remains relatively underrepresented within mainstream media, a few writers are extensively covered, thereby occupying a space of ‘hypervisibility.’ I then read Vuong’s collections of poetry, identifying spaces where he complicates understandings of Asian America through his work to reflect the diasporic nature of the communities included. Through Vuong’s work, it becomes possible to see how contemporary Asian American poets contribute to and depart from dominant narratives of Asian America.

Table of Contents

INTRODUCTION           1

POETRY AS ILLUMINATION: LITERATURE REVIEW 8

1. POETRY AND MARGINALIZED COMMUNITIES   8

2. THE ASIAN AMERICAN DIASPORA IN LITERATURE           10

4. ASIAN AMERICAN POETRY IN HISTORY  14

4.1 Activist Poetry Movement: ‘Protest poetry’ and Solidarity        16

4.2 Identity and Belonging Within Post-Activist Poetry       17

A SINGLE ASIAN AMERICAN POET: TRENDS IN ASIAN AMERICAN POETRY          27

1. RELATED WORK      27

1.1 Introduction            27

1.2 Related Studies in Black Studies               28

1.3 Hypotheses             29

2. DATA COLLECTION                32

3. RESULTS      35

3.1 Hypervisibility Among Asian American Poets  35

3.2 Representation by Geography    38

3.3 Representation by Gender             41

3.4 Representation Over Time             43

3.5 Higher Education: Impact of MFA/PhD Degrees              45

3.6 Case Study: Ocean Vuong and Appearances Over Time           46

VISIBILITY AND VOICE: THE INFLUENCE OF OCEAN VUONG       49

1. INTRODUCTION     49

2. NOVEL AND POETRY IN VUONG’S WORK              51

2.1 On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous               51

2.2 Time is a Mother  53

3. TIMING OF PUBLICATION WITHIN ASIAN AMERICAN LITERATURE       55

4. VUONG AND HYPERVISIBILITY     57

5. VUONG AND POST-PUBLICATION ENGAGEMENT           60

6. CONCLUSION          62

OCCUPYING SPACE AND MEMORY THROUGH VUONG’S POETRY           64

1. OVERVIEW 64

2. NIGHT SKY WITH EXIT WOUNDS 65

2.1 Marginalization in “Seventh Circle of Earth”      65

2.2 Fragmentation in “Notebook Fragments”            69

3. TIME IS A MOTHER 73

3.1 Double Meanings and Reframing in “Not Even”               74

3.2 Physical Space and Transcending Race in “Nothing” 78

3.3 Poetic Purpose through “Reasons for Staying”                 83

MOVING FORWARD: ASSEMBLAGE AND DISIDENTIFICATION IN VUONG’S POETRY   88

1. OVERVIEW 88

2. IDENTITY CREATION THROUGH ASSEMBLAGE THEORY              88

3. DISIDENTIFICATION AS A STRATEGY FOR SURVIVAL     93

3.1 Subverting the Lyric Form and English Language           95

3.2 Queering Narratives of War and Trauma               96

3.3 Satire as Means of Resistance   98

4. FRAMING ASIAN AMERICAN POETRY WITH ASSEMBLAGE AND DISIDENTIFICATION              100

CONCLUSION                102

WORKS CITED                107

About this Honors Thesis

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School	Emory College
Department	English
Degree	B.B.A.
Submission	Honors Thesis
Language	English
Research Field	Asian American Studies Literature, American Literature, Asian
Palavra-chave	Poetry Ocean Vuong Asian American Studies Digital Humanities Disidentification Visibility Assemblage Occupying Space Hypervisibility Diaspora Media Coverage
Committee Chair / Thesis Advisor	Erica Kanesaka, Emory University
Committee Members	Chris Suh, Emory University Dan Sinykin, Emory University

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