Last night, a Taiwanese friend messaged me about the US presidential election. My succinct response: 「我也怕」 ("I too am afraid.") Maybe this goes without saying, but I didn't sleep much. I began the morning with a email from a distressed student, unable to attend class because of their emotional state after the results of the…Read more “I too am afraid” 「我也怕」
Religion
Foreign bones on Taiwan soil: the Princess of Eight Treasures (part 2)
(part 1) Having read about the Princess of Eight Treasures online years ago, when we were in Kenting for a night at a resort in late December 2015 (thanks parents!), I made sure to go see the temple in person. Granted, my pictures shared here are little different from what you can find yourself via online…Read more Foreign bones on Taiwan soil: the Princess of Eight Treasures (part 2)
Foreign bones on Taiwan soil: the Princess of Eight Treasures (part 1)
At the southern point of Taiwan, not far from the hedonic bustle of Kenting's main strip, small waves rush and retreat reassuringly across the white sand of the village's beach. At its eastern end sits a small temple, easily looked over as another one of the millions of shrines that dot the Taiwanese landscape, urban…Read more Foreign bones on Taiwan soil: the Princess of Eight Treasures (part 1)
What I did on my Winter Vacation… (what vacation?)
We spent a fantastic week or so in Taiwan in December. It says something about the past eight weeks, in which I've collected 10 boarding passes for three different itineraries (including the Taiwan vacation) and purchased tickets for two new itineraries (Seattle and Kyoto, I'm hitting both AAS conferences this year), that I'm only just now,…Read more What I did on my Winter Vacation… (what vacation?)
The Complete Work In Search of the Origins of the Deities of the Three Schools《三教源流搜神大全》
Quickly, because I really should be writing. Thanks to following Shuge Library (@shugeorg) on Twitter, a group that hosts and shares high quality scans of Chinese works in the public domain, The Complete Work In Search of the Origins of the Deities of the Three Schools《三教源流搜神大全》came to my attention a few months ago. With over 120…Read more The Complete Work In Search of the Origins of the Deities of the Three Schools《三教源流搜神大全》
Ten Thousand Treasures of 1895
Printed in 1895, the Newly Expanded Druggist's Ten Thousand Treasures Encyclopedia (新增懸壺萬寶全書) contains far more than medical advice. Even if you can't read a word of Chinese, the charming illustrations alone lead me to recommend that you take a couple minutes to browse through the work anyway. There's a lot more going on in it…Read more Ten Thousand Treasures of 1895
Maiden Huang 黃寶姑 (3)
(1: Tainan local women, Taiwan local religion) (2: Mother Gu Temple 辜婦媽廟) This post has been a very long time in coming because Huang Baogu's story is so rich with issues to discuss that it keeps threatening to turn itself into an article or a book chapter. Which, in fact, it may end up becoming…Read more Maiden Huang 黃寶姑 (3)
Review: Fireproof Moth: A Missionary in Taiwan’s White Terror
The title of Milo Thornberry's book, Fireproof Moth: A Missionary in Taiwan's White Terror, comes from the remark of US State Department official, made shortly after the family was deported from Taiwan in 1971: "There is no shortage of American graduate students, missionaries... with both ardent views on Taiwanese Independence and a willingness to conduct…Read more Review: Fireproof Moth: A Missionary in Taiwan’s White Terror
Contextualizing heterodox sects in China
Has anyone else been following this story? NY Times: 5 Sect Members Go on Trial in Killing at McDonald’s in China I first heard about this sect, Eastern Lightning or the Church of Almighty God, when I was in Taiwan last year. Since this murder in May earlier this year, they have been getting far…Read more Contextualizing heterodox sects in China
Narrative Compass
In my non-academic reading recently, I've been enjoying the essays collected in A Narrative Compass: Stories that Guide Women's Lives. Though it may sound like a self help book, it's actually nineteen essays written by women academics - professors and students of literature, folklore or history; or librarians - about how some narrative affected them…Read more Narrative Compass
Far From Formosa 