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Asian and Asian-American Traditions in Language Arts

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Asian and Asian-American Traditions in Language Arts Portland Public Schools Geocultural Baseline Essay Series ASIAN AND ASIAN-AMERICAN TRADITIONS IN LANGUAGE ARTS by PROFESSOR SHAWN WONG AND DR. NASEEM A. HINES Naseem Hines Dr. Naseem Akhtar Hines received her PhD in Asian Languages and Literature from the University of Washington in Seattle. Her Dissertation focuses on the devotional literature of North India. The topic of her Master’s Theses was “The Imagery of Wine in the Urdu Poetry.” She received her undergraduate degree in English Literature from the University of Washington in Seattle, and from Hyderabad, Deccan, India. She taught at the University of Washington in Seattle, at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri, at University of California at Berkeley and, in Autumn 2001, she joins the Department of Sanskrit and Indian Studies at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachussetts. Dr. Hines has traveled and participated in major national and international academic conferences. Her scholarly articles, fiction, and poetry have been published in several in several anthologies. Her work and travel experience have afforded her a deep insight into the literature, art, music and cultures of the world. Currently, she is working on an English translation of a fourteenth-century Indo-Sufi allegorical romance, Chandayan. Shawn Wong Professor Shawn Wong received his undergraduate degree in English at the University of California at Berkeley in 1971, and a Master's Degree in Creative Writing at San Francisco State University in 1974. He has taught at Mills College, University of California at Santa Cruz and San Francisco State University. Shawn Wong has served as Chairman of the Seattle Arts Commission, Coordinator of Seattle's Bumbershoot Festival Commission and as a consultant for public arts agencies, including the National Endowment for the Arts. He is presently an associate professor of American Ethnic Studies at the University of Washington. In addition to the publication of his poetry, fiction, essays and reviews in periodicals and anthologies, Shawn Wong was also the recipient of the National Endowment for the Arts Creative Writing Fellowship. Revision: 2001-05-07 PPS Geocultural Baseline Essay Series AUTHORS: Wong & Hines SUBJECT: Language Arts Asian and Asian-American Traditions in Language Arts Table of Contents Introduction .....................................................................................................................iii Intercultural Currents in Asia........................................................................................... 1 Language and Script ....................................................................................................... 4 Traditional Literatures of Asia ......................................................................................... 6 Folk Tales of India ...................................................................................................... 6 Classical Literature of India ........................................................................................ 7 Folk Tales of West Asia............................................................................................ 11 Classical Literatures of West Asia............................................................................ 13 Folk Tales of Korea, China and Japan ..................................................................... 16 Classical Literatures of Korea, China and Japan ..................................................... 21 Folk Traditions of Southeast Asia............................................................................. 25 Classical Literature of Southeast Asia...................................................................... 28 Folk Tales of Central Asia ........................................................................................ 33 The Infuence of Asian Myths, Legends and Heroic Literature on Asian-American Literature....................................................................................................................... 35 Types of Asian-American Literature.............................................................................. 40 Salient Motifs in Asian-American Literature .................................................................. 41 Critical Issues for Teachers........................................................................................... 42 The Features of Asian-American Literature from 1875 to 2000 .................................... 43 Chronology of Events in Asian-American History.......................................................... 49 Survey of the Asian-American Experience (1875-1999) ............................................... 53 Chinese-American Literature.................................................................................... 53 Japanese-American Literature ................................................................................. 63 Filipino-American Literature...................................................................................... 73 Hawaiian American Literature .................................................................................. 76 Korean-American Literature ..................................................................................... 79 South Asian-American Literature.............................................................................. 82 Iranian-American Literature...................................................................................... 85 Southeast Asian-American Literature....................................................................... 88 Survey of Asian-American Children’s Literature............................................................ 93 Stereotypes in Asian-American Literature..................................................................... 96 Bibliography ................................................................................................................ 100 ADDITIONAL BIBLIOGRAPHY................................................................................... 117 ii AUTHORS: Wong & Hines SUBJECT: Language Arts Introduction Work on the Asian and Asian American Traditions in Language Arts Baseline Essay began in the early 1990's as part of an initiative by the Portland School District to recognize the contributions of Americans of Asian heritage in the fields of Art, Language Arts, Mathematics, Music, Science, and Social Science with a series of essays. Nearly a decade ago, although the rhetoric to promote and cherish the cultural diversity within the United States culture flourished, particularly in the higher education sector, little action was visible at the elementary/secondary level. To the authors' knowledge, the Portland (Oregon) School District was the first educational organization to actively demonstrate a commitment to promoting this diversity at the grade-school level. By funding this series of baseline essays dedicated to the study of the contributions of Asia and the Asian diaspora in the United States, the Portland School District has provided leadership among the school districts of the United States. The main focus of this essay is to document the general history, culture(s), and contributions of the geocultural group defined as Asian-American and their contributions to American Literature. The essay begins with a brief overview of the folk and classical literatures of Asia. This section is meant only as an introduction to Asian-American literature, and is not meant as a comprehensive study of these literatures. The section on Asian literatures is followed by a section detailing the influence of Asian literatures on the literature of Asian America. We do not mean to imply, however, that Asian literature provides the sole influence on the literatures of Asian America. In fact, Asian- American literature has been influenced by all of the diverse sources which have influenced most American literature. The literatures of Asia do provide, however, specific source materials which have been explored by some, but not all Asian- American writers. While reading this essay, it is important to keep clear the distinction between Asian literature and Asian-American literature. From its inception by co-author Professor Wong and his associates at the University of Washington, the Essay has undergone enhancements and has increased considerably in its scope. Nevertheless, it is by no means comprehensive and there may still be a need to provide a fuller treatment of the American literature that has been iii AUTHORS: Wong & Hines SUBJECT: Language Arts generated by the authors of Arab, Israeli, Turkish, Persian, and Afghani heritage. These concerns will need to be addressed in a separate volume in the future by scholars who specialize in the literature of the above-mentioned regions. With reference to Asian names, attempts were made by the authors to standardize the transliteration of names and words in this test. However, many different systems are used to transliterate Asian languages. In this Essay and in each instance, the transliteration system used by the quoted scholar is applied. There may therefore be some residual inconsistencies. The authors are certainly honored to acknowledge the help of many reviewers, consultants, and advisors. Among them are Wei Ming Daiiotis, Pamela J. Oakes, and Cynthia Denning, all of the University of Washington, who supported Professor Wong at the early stages. Later, Ms. Anne Murphy provided extensive and valuable comments on the South Asia section.
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