EXPANSIVE HYBRIDITY: MULTILINGUAL AND VISUAL POETICS IN CONTEMPORARY EXPERIMENTAL ASIAN AMERICAN AND PACIFIC ISLANDER POETRY A Dissertation Submitted to the Temple University Graduate Board In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY by Elizabeth Kim May 2021 Examining Committee Members: Jena Osman, Advisory Chair, English Sue-Im Lee, English Eli Goldblatt, English Josephine Park, External Member, University of Pennsylvania, English © Copyright 2021 by Elizabeth Kim All Rights Reserved ii ABSTRACT Although the term hybrid has gained much traction in literary analyses of contemporary experimental poetry, there is a notable divide within scholarly discourse wherein its uses pertain to either form or content. The term has been used by literary critics and anthologists to categorize works of poetry that combine formal techniques and practices from opposing traditions of literary history, but within cultural, postcolonial, and Asian American studies, it has served as an important term that designates sites of resistance within cross-cultural contexts of uneven power dynamics. This discrepancy in uses of the term hybrid serves as the basis for my critical investigation of experimental poetry by Cathy Park Hong, Craig Santos Perez, Don Mee Choi, and Monica Ong. This dissertation presents an interdisciplinary reassessment of the concept of hybridity that applies it to both formal experimentation and cultural content by examining the innovative ways in which Asian American and Pacific Islander poets use hybrid forms to represent hybrid identities and the particular social, political, and colonial contexts within which they emerge. While the term in relation to ethnic American poetry has primarily pertained to multilingual features, my study widens the scope of hybridity to not only include verbal expression but also visual forms of representation (such as photographs, illustrations, and digital renderings of images). How do these poets grapple with both text and image as a means of communicating across and confronting different types of boundaries (such as linguistic, national, cultural, racial, and ideological)? How do they utilize the page as a textual-visual space to not only represent hybrid identity but also to critique their social and political milieu? I address these inquiries by exploring the ways iii in which Hong, Perez, Choi, and Ong enact formal hybridity to challenge multilingualism as cosmopolitan commodity, the colonial erasure of indigenous language and culture, hegemonic narratives of history, and representations of the racial Other. This dissertation argues that their poetry demonstrates an expansive hybridity in which multilingual and mixed-media practices serve as the very means by which they negotiate the fraught conditions of migration, colonization, geopolitics, and marginalization. iv For my mother v ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This dissertation came to fruition through the tremendous help and support of many brilliant and wonderful people. My deepest gratitude goes to Jena Osman, who first introduced me to Theresa Hak Kyung Cha’s Dictee—the book that, in many ways, started it all—over a decade ago and has since then continued to support my academic endeavors. Her constant encouragement, willingness to read my messy drafts, clarifying guidance, and unwavering confidence in my ability to do the work have been invaluable. I am immensely grateful to Sue-Im Lee, whose courses provided the scholarly training and intellectual rigor necessary to write this dissertation. Her generous feedback on my drafts—which always included the most apt analogies for crafting effective writing— helped shape my micro- and macro-level thinking into a cohesive project. My sincere gratitude to Eli Goldblatt, who through his genuine enthusiasm for my work, ability to help me recognize the “true story” behind my research, and words of affirmation has been a reliable source of support throughout this journey. It has truly been a pleasure and gift to work with all of you and I aspire to be the kind of instructor that you have been to me. Many thanks as well to Josephine Nock-Hee Park for her time, insightful feedback, and confidence in the value of my project. Having admired your work long before the conception of this dissertation, it was an honor to have you on my committee as my outside reader. I am thankful for the many professors at Temple whose courses have contributed to the thinking and research that led to this dissertation: Miles Orvell, Steve Newman, Shannon Miller, Suzanne Gauch, Brian Teare, Rachel Blau DuPlessis, Stanley vi McDonald, and Pattie McCarthy. My thanks to those who employed me throughout my time at Temple, not only providing opportunities for professional development but offering valuable pedagogical guidance: from the First Year Writing Program, Rachael Groner and Cate Almon; from Institutional Research and Assessment, Sally Frazee and Rachel Hample; from the Student Success Center, Lori Salem and Lorraine Savage; from Valley Forge Military College, Chris Nosal; from the Russell Conwell Center, James Sellers. Thanks as well to Sharon Logan for handling all of my paperwork and always with kind words of encouragement. My gratitude also goes to the Graduate Board Fellowship Committee for awarding me the Dissertation Completion Grant, which provided the time and funds necessary to finish this dissertation. The Student Success Center’s Just Write sessions and writing retreats also provided (virtual) spaces conducive for making consistent progress; many thanks to Lorraine Savage and Eloise Murphy for facilitating them. This dissertation could not have been completed without the camaraderie of my dear friends and colleagues at Temple. Darla Himeles was my very first cohort confidant and her boundless empathy, kindness, and ability to approach any situation with careful attention and care have been inspirational; thank you for the many reassuring conversations, the encouragement to keep at my poetry, and your unshakable sincerity. Beyond a shared taste in music, podcasts, and films that made every conversation with Stephen Kelly enjoyable, his consistent readiness to offer help, lend an attentive ear, and give empathetic responses have filled me with a faith-restored-in-humanity kind of warmth; thank you for your unrivaled wit, thoughtful advice, and for not maintaining the mystery for too long. Elizabeth White-Vidarte swapped chapter drafts with me during vii these critical final months and offered thoughtful feedback, much needed commiseration, and reminders to sleep more; thank you for helping me to push through the revision process with some of my sanity still intact. I am also grateful for those who reminded me that I was not alone in my struggles, frustrations, or accomplishments: Carla Anderson, Vanessa Loh, Femi Oyebade, Holly Schaeffer-Raymond, Julie Yang, Micah Savaglio, Charlie Manis, Lindsay Bartkowski, Tiffany DeRewal, Ted Howell, Leslie Allison, Dana Gehling, Min Kyung Boo, Alyssa Luck, Naaja Rogers, and Choe Huh-Prudente. I consider myself blessed beyond measure to have wise and selfless friends who have been more generous with their time and care than I know how to repay. Soo Lee has laughed, cried, and walked with me through my best and worst moments; thank you for your immeasurable supply of joy, speaking truth when I need to hear it most, keeping me humble, and for nearly always calling first. Maria Kim, Micky Kim, Anita Lai, and Sharon Sharick have kept me grounded and accountable; thank you all for never being too far for a good conversation. Though admittedly an incomplete list, many friends have accompanied me through the difficulties of these past eight years: Yoona Ahn, Jaeun Lee, Semi Jung, Jessie Yi, Jenn Im, Eddie Kim, Min Kim, Julie Lee, Juhee Park, Liz Hou, Michelle Kwon, Haesook Hong, Wayne Nguyen, Dan Kim, Eddie Sharick, Andrew Sun, Chanmi Jung, Brian Pyles, Young Kim, Joseph Chung, Hannah Chung, Lillian Lim, Lily Jang, Rachel Chung, Alisa Wismer, Kathryn Lund, Min Lee, Onazi Aboh, Dan Koh, Byong Lee, Yumee Kim, Dave Park, Michelle O. Kwon, Essence Ward, and Anna Alves. My heartfelt thanks to my relatives, Diane, Bobby, grandmother, aunts, and uncles, here and in Seoul: thank you for your utter dependability, and all the laughter and lightness you bring. And to my family, mom, Lois, and Josh: your steady patience, viii understanding, and presence were the unseen propellers behind this work. Mom, your prayers gave me the strength and resolve to persevere every day; thank you for everything. Above all, I thank God, who placed in me a love for poetry and who has been faithful to finish what he began. Each milestone of this degree has been nothing short of a miracle. His faithfulness is the watermark on every page written here. ix TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ABSTRACT ....................................................................................................................... iii DEDICATION .....................................................................................................................v ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ................................................................................................. vi LIST OF FIGURES ........................................................................................................... xi CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION .........................................................................................................1 2. “CRAMMED WITH TONGUES”: COSMOPOLITAN CREOLE IN CATHY PARK HONG’S DANCE DANCE REVOLUTION