Staying Alive: A Contemporary Rejuvenation of the Biji

451 Pages·2016·1.26 MB·English

by  Dave Drayton

Staying Alive: A Contemporary Rejuvenation of the Biji

A Dissertation Submitted for the Degree of

Doctor of Philosophy

To the Department of Communications
In the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences
at
The University of Technology
Sydney
2015

By Dave Drayton

Primary Supervisor: Dr Sue Joseph

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Certificate Of Original Authorship
I certify that the work in this thesis has not previously been submitted for a degree nor
has it been submitted as part of requirements for a degree except as fully acknowledged
within the text.
I also certify that the thesis has been written by me. Any help that I have received in my
research work and the preparation of the thesis itself has been acknowledged. In
addition, I certify that all information sources and literature used are indicated in the
thesis.

Signature of Student:
Dave Drayton
Date: 20/08/2015

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Acknowledgements
The completion of this dissertation would not have been possible without the help of the
following people:
Sue Joseph, for guiding me through Honours and into post-graduate study, being a
resounding sounding board, and a source of energy when it all seemed too much.
Jo and Nicky, for encouraging and facilitating my love of learning and this gargantuan
undertaking.
Dr Jack George James Rudi McLean Tsonis, for his support and encouragement from
within the deep height of the Atterton Academy.
Justine Keating, for her patience and support.
The following people and institutes were also extremely helpful in their suggestions,
recommendations, clarifications, translations, and inspiration: Tim Kinsella, Dr Esther
Klein, Daniel Levin Becker, Chinese Studies Association of Australia, Marcel Benabou,
Dr Carrie Reed, James Mackay.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Certificate Of Original Authorship..……………………………………………... 3
Acknowledgements ………………………………………………………………... 4
Abstract ……………………………………………………………………………. 8
CHAPTER 1
Introduction ……………………………………………………………………….. 10
Justification of Scholarly Interest 16
CHAPTER 2
Biji …………………………………………………………………………………. 22
A Brief History of Biji 25
Existing Scholarship 32
CHAPTER 3
Oulipo …………………………………………………………………………..…. 39
Anoulipism 40
Sonnet 46
Sestina 48
Oulipopo 49
Oufinopo 50
Anoulipism & Genre 53
Oulipo in the 21st Century 56
Contemporary Critique of Oulipo 59
Oulipian Engagement with Asiatic Forms 65
CHAPTER 4
Critical Analysis…………………………………………………………………… 69
Douglas Coupland 73
Owen Kelly 83
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Ouyang Yu 85
The Genre-ness of Biji 88
The Influence & Traces of Biji in Contemporary Fiction 91
Contemporary Zuihitsu 97
Kimiko Hahn 102
Anthony Peck 108
Donald Richie 110

CHAPTER 5
The Contemporary Form………………………………………………………… 113
Why Biji Here & Now? 120
Unintentional Biji 138
CHAPTER 6
Creative Component (or: How I wrote one potential contemporary biji)…… 167
What’s In A Name? 167
Arrayed Miscellaneous Notes On Fear & Loneliness 169
Nomenophobia 182
Omegaphobia 183
Docerophobia 184
Aibohphobia 184
Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia 185
Futuraphobia 186
Arrayed Miscellaneous Notes On Oulipo 186

CHAPTER 7
Reflection………………………………………………………………………….. 193

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CHAPTER 8
Conclusion…………………………………………………………………………. 206

Bibliography……………………………………………………………………….. 208

Arrayed Miscellaneous Notes On Fear & Loneliness…………………………… 228

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Abstract
Staying Alive: A Contemporary Rejuvenation of the Biji
Dave Drayton
2015

In 1998 John Minford and Tong Man attempted to transpose to contemporary English
an excerpt from the Qing era biji Liao-chai chih-yi [Strange Stories From A Chinese
Studio], by Pu Songling. In the wake of this attempt Douglas Coupland, Ouyang Yu,
and Owen Kelly have all published contemporary English language biji. This thesis will
analyse, and contextualise, the most recent development in this centuries-old form.
Following analysis of the four contemporary biji above I will propose a selection of
texts that could be included within this budding corpus.
The creative component of this thesis, titled Arrayed Miscellaneous Notes On Fear &
Loneliness, offers another potential example of contemporary English language biji.
Reflecting the influence of the Paris-based writing group Oulipo on the methodology
used during the theoretical research, Arrayed Miscellaneous Notes On Fear &
Loneliness explores the potential for the biji as a textual site conducive to constraint and
experimentation.

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CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION
Is it possible to construct a contemporary long-form narrative in the style of a biji
collection through a process of anoulipism? And what form does the contemporary
English language biji take?

The exegetical component of my doctorate will be comprised of eight chapters, in order:
Introduction, Biji, Oulipo, Critical Analysis, The Contemporary Form, Creative
Component, Reflection, and a Conclusion. This introduction will clarify terms and the
framework through which I will be conducting my study; justify the need for such
scholarship; and provide an overview of the contents of the thesis.
But first: what is the Oulipo – or more accurately, ‘who’? And what is a biji?
Oulipo and biji are both, if nothing else, chronically miscategorised, often
misunderstood, and perpetually intriguing elements of international literature.
Oulipo is a French writing group – openly eschewing the labels of a ‘movement’ or
‘literary school’ (Queneau [1965] 1986, p.51) – that originated in 1960 through the
efforts of Noël Arnaud, Jacques Bens, Claude Berge, Jacques Duchateau, Latis,
François Le Lionnais, Jean Lescure, Raymond Queneau, Jean Queval and Albert-Marie
Schmidt.
Its name is a shortening of Ouvroir de littérature potentielle or ‘workshop for potential
literature’ in English, and the group’s five-and-counting decade existence has seen it
pursue potential literature and literature written to various constraints. A personal
favourite description of the group and its exploits is offered by Philip Howard,
columnist for The Times in London, who references it as: “The French avant-garde
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