{"id":3724,"date":"2017-05-08T09:00:58","date_gmt":"2017-05-08T01:00:58","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/xichuanpoetry.com\/?p=3724"},"modified":"2017-05-04T15:18:21","modified_gmt":"2017-05-04T07:18:21","slug":"matt-turner-on-qin-goodmans-iron-moon-anthology","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/xichuanpoetry.com\/?p=3724","title":{"rendered":"Matt Turner on Qin & Goodman’s Iron Moon Anthology"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/a>In a piece titled “A Poem of Shame: In the Words of China\u2019s Workers<\/a>” published at Hyperallergic<\/em>, Matt Turner gives his take on Iron Moon: An Anthology of Chinese Worker Poetry<\/i>, edited by Qin Xiaoyu\u00a0\u79e6\u6653\u5b87 <\/span> and translated by Eleanor Goodman. He explains,<\/p>\n

In 1923, not long after returning from working as a correspondent in Moscow, becoming the Chairman of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), and translating \u201cThe Internationale\u201d for the first time into Chinese, Qu Qiubai wrote the poem \u201cIron Flower\u201d (which I\u2019ve translated below). It was written at an odd moment in CCP history: a literati like Qu could accomplish all he did politically and write modernist poetry, as much about the revolution as about signifying a new kind of beauty.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m not of a soft and smooth nature,<\/em>
\n I\u2019m not in the midst of glam and grace;<\/em>
\n inside this smoke-filled factory,<\/em>
\n forging my iron flower, fire surges.<\/em>
\n Iron flower not receiving the warmth of sunlight,<\/em><\/p>\n

iron flower not getting the solace of moonlight;<\/em>
\n the unifying gale of fire in the furnace,<\/em>
\n it cracks to burst the pistils into flame.<\/em>
\n That place\u2019s sound of hammers is dull,<\/em>
\n that place\u2019s sound of metal is staccato;<\/em>
\n like a copper pine whipping the hard wind,<\/em>
\n I\u2019ve fallen in love, and can\u2019t bear desertion.<\/em><\/p>\n

This isn\u2019t a fan dance, lightly circling across the floor \u2014<\/em>
\n but wherever you look are callouses \u2014 strong hands.<\/em>
\n The inextinguishable flame burns in the factory,<\/em>
\n and shines on my resolute and bold chest.<\/em><\/p>\n

I billow labor\u2019s rage in the iron furnace,<\/em>
\n I envision, envision the Great Community,<\/em>
\n and drunkenly belt out a song\u2026 the masses!<\/em>
\n Forging my iron flower, fire surges.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

… A volume of similar indictments, Iron Moon: An Anthology of Chinese Worker Poetry<\/em>, edited by Qin Xiaoyu and translated by Eleanor Goodman, collects work by Xu Lizhi and 30 other worker poets. Their poetry ranges from lyrical, like the above piece, to experimental (exemplified by another of Xu\u2019s poems, a verbatim listing of a peanut butter production slip).<\/p>\n

Poems are in verse, prose, and combinations thereof. Some tell stories, some list facts, some offer only fragments. The formal variety is on par with what you would get from any major anthology in the US (excepting spoken-word poetry).<\/p>\n

\n

The authors are not members of literary coteries, either. Aside from being poets, all they have in common is that they are migrant laborers.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\n

Click the image for the full review.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In a piece titled “A Poem of Shame: In the Words of China\u2019s Workers” published at Hyperallergic, Matt Turner gives his take on Iron Moon: An Anthology of Chinese Worker Poetry, edited by Qin Xiaoyu\u00a0\u79e6\u6653\u5b87 and translated by Eleanor Goodman. … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false}}},"categories":[13,3],"tags":[388,1710,165,1831,1485],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p8srwF-Y4","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":3864,"url":"https:\/\/xichuanpoetry.com\/?p=3864","url_meta":{"origin":3724,"position":0},"title":"Foster on Qin & Goodman’s Iron Moon","author":"Lucas Klein","date":"October 4, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Kate Hanson Foster reviews Iron Moon: An Anthology of Chinese Migrant Worker Poetry, edited by Qin Xiaoyu \u79e6\u6653\u5b87 and translated by Eleanor Goodman, for The Somerville Times. Foster writes: The translations by Eleanor Goodman are an impeccable achievement of negotiating two linguistic landscapes. Multiple layers of artistry are at play\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Links"","block_context":{"text":"Links","link":"https:\/\/xichuanpoetry.com\/?cat=3"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thesomervilletimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/ots_9_27_17_web.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":3749,"url":"https:\/\/xichuanpoetry.com\/?p=3749","url_meta":{"origin":3724,"position":1},"title":"Walsh on Iron Moon Anthology of Workers’ Poetry","author":"Lucas Klein","date":"May 12, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"In an article titled \"The Chinese Factory Workers Who Write Poems on Their Phones\" on Literary Hub, Megan Walsh reviews Iron Moon: An Anthology of Chinese Migrant Worker Poetry, edited by Qin Xiaoyu \u79e6\u6653\u5b87 and translated by Eleanor Goodman. She writes: Similar to the way the industrial revolution in England\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Links"","block_context":{"text":"Links","link":"https:\/\/xichuanpoetry.com\/?cat=3"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":3644,"url":"https:\/\/xichuanpoetry.com\/?p=3644","url_meta":{"origin":3724,"position":2},"title":"van Crevel on Chinese Migrant Worker Poetry","author":"Lucas Klein","date":"February 27, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"At Modern Chinese Literature & Culture Maghiel van Crevel reviews Iron Moon the film (directed by Qin Xiaoyu \u79e6\u6653\u5b87 and Wu Feiyue \u5434\u98de\u8dc3) and the anthology (edited by Qin Xiaoyu, translated by Eleanor Goodman). The review begins: Poetry is the most ubiquitous of literary genres. It is written and recited\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Links"","block_context":{"text":"Links","link":"https:\/\/xichuanpoetry.com\/?cat=3"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/u.osu.edu\/mclc\/files\/2017\/02\/51FjYtBrYfL._SX334_BO1204203200_-1olpc4c-202x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":3537,"url":"https:\/\/xichuanpoetry.com\/?p=3537","url_meta":{"origin":3724,"position":3},"title":"Bai Meigui Chinese Poetry Translation Competition","author":"Lucas Klein","date":"August 10, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"The University of Leeds is hosting its third Bai Meigui Translation Competition, with poems--by Chi Lingyun \u6c60\u51cc\u4e91, Qin Xiaoyu \u79e6\u6653\u5b87, and Xu Xiangchou \u5f90\u4e61\u6101--chosen by judges Eleanor Goodman, Heather Inwood, and Canaan Morse. The winner will receive a \u00a3490 bursary to the \u2018Translate in the City\u2018 summer school at City\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Links"","block_context":{"text":"Links","link":"https:\/\/xichuanpoetry.com\/?cat=3"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":3578,"url":"https:\/\/xichuanpoetry.com\/?p=3578","url_meta":{"origin":3724,"position":4},"title":"NYTimes Reviews Iron Moon Chinese Worker Poetry Documentary","author":"Lucas Klein","date":"November 14, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Andy Webster at the New York Times has published a brief review of Iron Moon \u6211\u7684\u8bd7\u7bc7, a documentary on poetry-writing industrial workers in southern China, directed by Qin Xiaoyu \u79e6\u6653\u5b87 and Wu Feiyue \u5434\u98de\u8dc3. Webster writes\uff1a With arresting images, \u201cIron Moon\u201d powerfully addresses China\u2019s moral crisis in the wake of\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Links"","block_context":{"text":"Links","link":"https:\/\/xichuanpoetry.com\/?cat=3"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/9\/90\/Iron_Moon.jpg\/220px-Iron_Moon.jpg","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":3952,"url":"https:\/\/xichuanpoetry.com\/?p=3952","url_meta":{"origin":3724,"position":5},"title":"Matt Turner Introduces Asia’s Proletarian Lit","author":"Lucas Klein","date":"December 8, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"In a piece titled \"We Are Revolution\" for Bookforum, Matt Turner introduces Asia's Proletarian Literature. He writes: During the last election cycle, the American working class got a lot of airplay. Donald Trump\u2019s rhetoric was a throwback to a different era of politics and a different economy. Talk of American\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Links"","block_context":{"text":"Links","link":"https:\/\/xichuanpoetry.com\/?cat=3"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/xichuanpoetry.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3724"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/xichuanpoetry.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/xichuanpoetry.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xichuanpoetry.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xichuanpoetry.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3724"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/xichuanpoetry.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3724\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3727,"href":"https:\/\/xichuanpoetry.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3724\/revisions\/3727"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/xichuanpoetry.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3724"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xichuanpoetry.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3724"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xichuanpoetry.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3724"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}