A Forest of Names: 108 Meditations

By Ian Boyden

How do we honor the dead? How do we commit them to memory? And how do we come to terms with the way they died? To start, we can name them. When schools collapsed in an earthquake in China, burying over 5,000 children, the government brutally prevented parents from learning who had died. Artist Ai Weiwei, at risk to his own safety, gathered the names of these children, and their names are the subject of this book. Each poem is a poetic meditation on the image and concept suggested by the etymology in the Chinese characters. This act of poetic translation is both a heartbreaking tribute to people whose names have been erased, and a healing meditation on how language suggests a path forward.

July 30
Tiānwēi

Celestial Awe

He carried no iron into battle.
When he lifted his hand,
he brandished the sky.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Wesleyan University Press
• Release date: Sep 8, 2020
• ISBN: 9780819579966

Ian Boyden

Ian Boyden is a writer, translator, and visual artist. Consistent across his productions are an intense interest in material relevance, place-based thought, and ecology, with a deep awareness of East Asian aesthetics. He studied for several years in China and Japan, and ultimately received degrees in art history from Wesleyan University and Yale University. His work is often interdisciplinary, including collaborations that have involved a variety of scientists, poets, composers, and other artists.

Book preview

A FOREST OF NAMES

A FOREST OF NAMES

108 Meditations

IAN BOYDEN

WESLEYAN UNIVERSITY PRESS

MIDDLETOWN, CONNECTICUT

Wesleyan Poetry

Wesleyan University Press

Middletown CT 06459

www.wesleyan.edu/wespress

© 2020 Ian Boyden

All rights reserved

Manufactured in Canada

Typeset in Bembo, Futura, Songti, and Helvetica

Printed on #70 Rolland Enviro Satin. This paper is acid free, contains 100% post-consumer fiber, and is manufactured using renewable energy—Biogas and processed chlorine free. It is FSC® and Ancient Forest Friendly™ certified.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Boyden, Ian H., author.

Title: A forest of names : 108 meditations / Ian Boyden.

Description: Middletown : Wesleyan University Press, 2020. | Series: Wesleyan poetry | Includes index. | Summary: Poems meditating on the names of children lost in the 2008 Sichuan Earthquake —Provided by publisher.

Identifiers: LCCN 2020003827 (print) | LCCN 2020003828 (ebook) | ISBN 9780819579942 (hardcover) | ISBN 9780819579959 (trade paperback) | ISBN 9780819579966 (ebook)

Subjects: LCSH: Wenchuan Earthquake, China, 2008—Poetry. | LCGFT: Poetry.

Classification: LCC PS3602.O9343 F67 2020 (print) | LCC PS3602.O9343 (ebook) | DDC 811/.6—dc23

LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020003827

LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020003828

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Frontispiece and title page images:

All of the names of schoolchildren gathered from Names of the Student Earthquake Victims Found by the Citizens’ Investigation (2008–2011). Courtesy of Ai Weiwei Studios.

"Front cover illustration: Marble replica of twisted