Liberation, Rebirth and Salvation in Literary Works by Blind People in Taiwan

• In Event: Enabling Horizons for the Disabled: Dreams, Liberation and Visions of Hope in Performing Arts, Creative Writing and Film from China and Taiwan

Abstract

Prior to the 1990s, life writing in Taiwan, including both autobiographical and biographical works, focused exclusively on famous, able-bodied subjects. People with disabilities rarely if ever appeared. Since the late 20th century, however, both fictional treatments and non-fictional accounts of the lives of disabled people have become popular in Taiwan’s book market. People with visual impairments have produced many of these works. This article will focus on three different types of works by blind authors and analyze the role blindness plays in each case. First, poetry by Malieyafusi Monaneng, an aboriginal blind masseur who devoted his life to the liberation of Taiwan’s aboriginal peoples, reveals that he realized blindness posed little hindrance to him when compared to his ethnic background. Next, the personal essays of Tsong-Jyi Lin, a blind academic, reveal how the author came to understand the meaning of blindness through Buddhism. Finally, novels and essays by Wan-Jen Tzong demonstrate how a blind female author found her salvation in family love and Christianity. These blind authors have challenged and complicated the views and stereotypes commonly held by mainstream society about blind people. Their works have also helped us to not only gain a better understanding of the lives and experiences of those with visual impairments, but also comprehend how they found liberation, new life and salvation—or how they found meaning in life and hope—by engaging their disability through writing.

Author

• Tasing Chiu, Kaohsiung Medical University, Taiwan