Fri, May 29, 2026 page8

• EDITORIAL: Award shows might of Taiwan’s pen

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  Taiwan Travelogue (台灣漫遊錄), written by Taiwanese author Yang Shuang-zi (楊双子) and translated into English by Taiwanese-American Lin King (金翎), won the International Booker Prize last week, becoming the first Chinese-language novel to receive the award and a milestone for Taiwan’s literature on the global stage.

  First published in 2020, the novel follows a Japanese female writer gradually falling in love with her Taiwanese interpreter during a railway journey across Taiwan in 1938 under Japanese colonial rule. Alongside depictions of Taiwanese dishes such as braised pork rice and sweet bean ice, the story explores identity, queer intimacy, imperialism and cultural exchange through the relationship between colonizer and colonized.

  Natasha Brown, chair of the Booker Prize judging panel, described the novel as “both a successful romance and an incisive postcolonial novel.” In her acceptance speech, Yang said literature cannot be separated from politics.

  “Throughout the modern history of Taiwan’s literature, writers have continuously asked: ‘What kind of future do the people of Taiwan want? What kind of nation do the people of Taiwan want?’ Taiwan Travelogue explores these questions, too,” she said.

  Since the 17th century, Taiwan has undergone successive colonial and political transitions under the Netherlands, Spain, the Zheng regime, the Qing Dynasty, Japan and the Republic of China, whose Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) government retreated to Taiwan after the Chinese Civil War. Taiwan later transformed from KMT authoritarian rule into a self-ruled democracy, shaping its multicultural and inclusive identity.

  “The centuries-old inquiry in Taiwanese literature is, in fact, the centuries-old pursuit of freedom and equality by Taiwan’s people,” Yang said.

  Although historical fiction, the novel’s themes strongly resonate today as Taiwan faces mounting military and diplomatic pressure from the Chinese Communist Party-ruled People’s Republic of China, which claims Taiwan as part of its territory.

  In an interview with the Guardian, Yang commented on the books relevance to modern debates about Taiwanese identity.

  “Taiwanese people are still suffering from an identity crisis. Some of us believe ourselves to be Chinese and then others believe that we are Taiwanese,” she said. “Taiwanese people, we need to ask ourselves now — do we want to go back to being colonized? Do we want to live like that again? Be second-class citizens in our own land? I refuse.”

  One outlet summarized the interview with the headline: “Taiwan refuses to become second-class citizens again.”

  Taiwan continues resisting Beijing’s aggression amid international misconceptions and false claims surrounding its sovereignty, many influenced by China’s so-called “One China” principle.

  A similar controversy emerged in 2018 when Taiwanese writer Wu Ming-yi (吳明益), longlisted for the Booker Prize for The Stolen Bicycle (單車失竊記), had his nationality changed to “Taiwan, China” under pressure from Beijing. After protests from Wu and negotiations involving the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, organizers restored the designation to “Taiwan.”

  Yang and Taiwan Travelogue are now officially presented as Booker Prize winners from Taiwan.

  Alongside its globally recognized semiconductor industry and democratic resilience, Taiwan’s literature and culture could become powerful forms of soft power that help the world better understand the nation.

  During her acceptance speech, Yang said Taiwanese people have endured colonial rule and threats of invasion. She asked: “In the face of overwhelmingly powerful states, is literature useful? I have always believed that literature has power.”

  Yang also said that if the novel is eventually published in communist-ruled China, it could encourage cross-strait dialogue about “the future Taiwanese want” and help Chinese readers understand the differing histories and values across the Taiwan Strait.

  While Taiwan Travelogue has sold translation rights in 24 languages, King urged more translators to share Taiwan’s many democratic voices, which she compared to a cacophony. After Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, she decided to focus on translating Taiwanese works and vowed to continue “until Taiwan’s sovereignty was no longer viewed in the Anglophone world as provocative or a punchline.”

  The success of Taiwan Travelogue has created a historic opportunity to showcase Taiwan’s cultural strength. Greater support from government and society should be devoted to promoting Taiwan’s diverse soft power so the world can better hear the voices of Taiwanese defending freedom, democracy and a just national identity.
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