Boey Kim Cheng’s poem ‘Plum Blossom or Quong Tart at the QVB’tackles themes of migration and cultural identity, drawing historical examples of Chinese pioneer migrants who crossed the seas to find new lives overseas. What chiefly interests me is Boey’s allusion to the distortion and loss of Chinese culture over time, bringing me to my research question: What does the cultural loss in ‘Plum Blossom’ suggest about immigration?
My research question revolves around Boey’s theme of the loss of cultural identity. Throughout the poem, Boey alludes to the erosion of cultural identity and history through immigration: “Many Chinese names / became strange or lost / in the crossing.” (Boey, lines 31-33). As the Chinese people migrated to different lands speaking different languages, their names “became strange or lost” through inaccurate transliteration. Through the example of names, Boey suggests the complete distortion of native Chinese culture as it is blended with the culture of the new country of destination.
Boey also raises the issue of the loss of cultural history. He laments that his family history is nothing but “Broken branches. So little history / to go on.” (52-53). The diction of “So little history” suggests a tone of despair and disappointment at the loss of history to the passage of time. Additionally, the short plosive alliteration of “Broken branches” indicates the poet’s anger at the loss of identity after immigration.
What does the theme cultural loss in ‘Plum Blossom’, then, say about immigration? The research question is debatable. There is room for interpretation of Boey’s portrayal of cultural loss, both pessimistic and optimistic. While Boey portrays immigration as causing cultural loss, there is hope that the Chinese culture will live on as well. In that aspect, the motif of the plum blossom tree is interesting to us. Boey writes:
“Perhaps the plum will flourish
on this soil, like the white plum
in our yard, and transplanted,” (59-61)
There is a deeper meaning in these lines to be analysed in the context of our question. Perhaps the uprooted “white plum” is a metaphor for the Chinese diaspora scattered around the world through immigration, away from their native homeland. Will their “flourishing” overshadow their loss of cultural identity? The symbolism of the plum blossom also alludes to Chinese literary tradition, where they are characterised as a symbol of hope, and “a harbinger of spring” (Welch 38). Perhaps the Chinese diaspora will thrive and recover their heritage in “spring” when the flowers bloom. In any case, they are still connected with their culture through history, as depicted by Boey’s daughter touching the portrait of a distant ancestor, “connecting us” (104). Hence, we see that Boey’s poem allows for many different interpretations in his depiction of immigrant Chinese people.
In conclusion, my research question asks: What does the cultural loss in ‘Plum Blossom’ suggest about immigration? Does Boey take a pessimistic view, lamenting immigration as the cause of cultural loss? Or does he celebrate immigration, viewing the Chinese diaspora as a plum waiting for its moment to blossom? These different interpretations create depth for my question and make it debatable.
Annotated Bibliography
Welch. Patricia B. Chinese art: a guide to motifs and visual imagery. North Clarendon: Tuttle Publishing, 2008.
Boey, Kim C. “Plum Blossom or Quong Tart at the QVB” Poetry.sg, http://www.poetry.sg/boey-kim-cheng-plum-blossom. Accessed 26 March 2020.
Tan, Eugene K. B. “Re-Engaging Chineseness: Political, Economic and Cultural Imperatives of Nation-Building in Singapore.” The China Quarterly, vol. 175, 2003, pp. 751–774., doi:10.1017/S0305741003000432.
In the article, Tan examines how the Singapore Government has controlled the Chinese identity since the country’s birth. Tan argues that the Government has deliberately suppressed the Chinese identity. He argues for his case using statistics of the steady decrease in the number of Buddhists and the increase in English-speaking Chinese households. Tan’s observations of the decline in Chinese culture and erosion of cultural identity can potentially support my argument that Boey’s ‘Plum Blossom or Quong Tart at the QVB’ alludes to the loss of Chinese identity after migration.
Boey, Kim C. “’The Art of Being Home’: Home and Travel in Shirley Geok-lin Lim’s Poetry” Journal of Transnational American Studies, vol. 10(2), 2019.
In the article, Boey examines the oeuvre of fellow migrant Chinese poet Shirley Geok-lin Lim. Lim’s poetry, like Boey’s, touches on themes of immigration and cultural identity. Boey close-reads her poetry and notes how she integrates age-old cultures into her poetry, creating a unique, multicultural mix (Lim, 23). Boey’s observations and opinions in his article may help to shed light on his motivations behind writing ‘Plum Blossom’ and supplement my argument about diasporic Chinese recovering their heritage.