Ma Yongbo was born in 1964, Ph.D, representative of Chinese avant-garde poetry,and a leading scholar in Anglo-American poetry. He has published over eighty original works and translations since 1986 included 6 poetry collections. He focused on translating and teaching Anglo-American poetry and prose including the work of Dickinson, Whitman, Stevens, Pound, Williams and Ashbery. He recently published a complete translation of Moby Dick, which has sold over half a million copies. He teaches at Nanjing University of Science and Technology. The Collected Poems of Ma Yongbo (four volumes, Eastern Publishing Centre, 2024) comprising 1178 poems, celebrate 40 years of writing poetry.
Please share your thoughts about the future of literature.
As long as the human spirit remains alive, literature (poetry) will endure, serving as the most faithful companion to the soul. The power of poetry to console and uplift the human spirit will always remain indispensable.
When did you start writing?
I began writing poetry, plays, and novels in 1979 during my first year of high school. My works were officially published starting in 1986. Writing poetry is a form of spiritual practice for me; my goal is not to secure a place in literary history.
The Good and the Bad.
Nature is good; humans are bad.
Who is winning nowadays?
Petty people dominate in every field. Yet evil only prevails temporarily, for Christ has already overcome the world.
How many books have you written?
I have published six poetry collections (including The Complete Collection of Poetry, which comprises four volumes), two essay collections, three academic monographs, two biographies, and two prose-poetry collections.
And where can we find your books?
Most of my 80 original and translated works have been published in mainland China, with a few released in traditional Chinese editions in Taiwan. They are available on Dangdang, JD.com, and in physical bookstores. Public libraries worldwide also hold copies. My bilingual poetry collections with Indian poet Anand, my another bilingual poetry collections with Greek poet Eva and Mexican poet Jeanette are sold on Amazon. A select few works, such as my three-volume bilingual translation of John Ashbery’s selected poems, can also be found there.
The book: E-book or Hardcover book? What will be the future?
Physical books will become increasingly expensive, eventually turning into collectibles for a small minority. E-books aid dissemination and conserve energy.
A wish for 2025.
May my friends find peace and joy, and may they write poetry abundantly. I also hope to leverage my translation skills to introduce more outstanding poets from other languages into Chinese, building a rainbow bridge to overcome cultural barriers.
Musings on Husserl’s Personal Transcendental Phenomenology
Husserl’s own personal phenomenology was unique in many ways. He wrote, like others, of meaning and consciousness, but added his own individual flavor in giving us the noema, sense data and other concepts, virtually all of which, one could assert, have combined to withstand the test of time.
A key idea of Husserl’s circulates around the concept of meanings. He writes, “Everything that is logical falls under the two correlated categories of meaning and object.” (Welton 47) And what does he mean by this? First is the idea of mental acts or processes as the bearer of meanings (bedeutungen). One meaning can be instantiated or carried by many different mental acts or states. Further, meaning and objects are interrelated. States Husserl, “Meanings constitute … a class of concepts in the sense of ‘universal objects’.” (50) In just what sense did Husserl think such objects exist? Most likely, as objects of consciousness.
Second, is the idea that particular unities exist between mental acts – unities of meaning (somewhere between voicing and perceiving). He sees a perhaps-necessary intention to express meaning (content) in some form. This idea carries three “intentions.” First, is the voicing intention – for example, the production of certain sounds. Second is the meaning intention, in which some state of affairs is meant to be expressed by the sounds in question – content expresses the expressive act. At this point, there is a relation between meaning intention and meaning fulfillment. Third, is perceptual intention, in which sensations must become involved.
However, as Barry Smith notes, “it is important to stress that meanings as thus conceived by Husserl are not the objects of normal acts of language use. Meanings can however become the objects of special types of reflective act.” (20) It is this type of act that forms the basis of Husserl’s logic. Does that imply that Meaning is then Truth? J. N. Mohanty states, “truth, as correspondence of meaning with its object, is to be understood as the coincidence (deckung) of the meaning and its fulfilling intuition.” (50) Truth then lies in the theory of perceptions, of concept-formation, of “truth-in-itself,” as Smith argues (416). Finally, “One can analyze the meaning of … experience, and thereby investigate its intentional content…. It is meaning or sense that provides consciousness with its object-directedness.” (Zahavi, 22-23) Meaning is defined by the logic of truth via a perceptual state or process.
From his concept of meaning, Husserl shifts to the idea of description in building his “science” of phenomenology. Husserl writes,
In a certain way, we can thus distinguish “explanatory” phenomenology as a phenomenology of regulated genesis, and “descriptive” phenomenology as a phenomenology of possible, essential shapes (no matter how they have come to pass) in pure consciousness and their teleological ordering in the realm of possible reason under the headings “object” and “sense.” (318-319)
Having briefly touched on Object, let’s address sense in Husserl’s concept of description. The word “I” applies to the thinker of “this thought”; the description of self applies to oneself. “I” can be so described. What is it exactly to refer to or think about myself as myself? (Or could one perhaps ask which reality is the real reality?) Through sense and the reference of “I” the thing that satisfies description “D” can be viewed in two ways: “I” thoughts refer by way of some description of their reference, and the “I” in I-thoughts is a disguised (abbreviated) “definite description.” I-thoughts are referential. Husserl combines various sorts of references into one single reference in a fusion of separate objects. As Zahavi states, “reference is determined by the sense, that is … reference is effectuated via the sense.” (58) (Husserl often uses the term “sense-data”.) Of sense, Husserl writes,
Like perception, every intensive mental process—just this makes up the fundamental part of intentionality—has its “intentional Object,” i.e., its objective sense. Or, in other words: to have sense or “to intend to” something … is the fundamental characteristic of all consciousness which, therefore, is not just any mental living whatever, but is rather a <mental living> having sense, which is “noetic.” (89-90)
And of the the noetic (or the noema)? Zahavi argues,
It is widely acknowledged that the noema is something that is only discovered through the epoche [bracketing] and the reduction. It is only then that we thematize the intended qua intended, that is, the object exactly as it is meant and given. But does the epoche imply that we parenthesize the transcendent spatio-temporal world in order to account for internal mental representations, or does the epoche rather imply that we continue to explore and describe the transcendent spatio-temporal world, but in a new and different manner? Is the noema, the object-as-it-is-intended, to be identified with an internal mental representation—with an abstract and ideal sense—or rather with the givenness of the intended object itself? (58)
The noema ties in with meaning. Jaakko Hintikka contends “there is a temptation to isolate noemata conceptually from their objects far too rigidly, to assume that we can find out all we need to know about intentional meaning by examining the mediators of this meaning, the noemata.” (79) However Hintikka continues, “no analysis of the structure of the noema, however detailed and accurate, can tell you what its relation is to its object.” (79)
One can make at least three distinctions regarding the noema, perhaps by using a violin tone as a (unique) example. First, there is the tone, which is real and frankly foundational. Second, one should put aside questions of material reality of the tone, creating a tonal, spatial “phantom” (while forgetting about the source). Third, spatial apprehension can then be suspended and it becomes mere sense datum. Peter Simons puts it a different way though: “each noema has a kernel or nucleus which consists of three elements: a substratum, a set of qualitative moments, and modes of fulfillment of these qualities.” (127) The noema circles back to the idea of objects. Whatever the case, it can be agreed there are real objects appearing in various ways (as in physical sounds), the appearance through which real objects appear (such as auditory appearances), and finally, hyletic data (sense contents, or sensations).
Another concept Husserl emphasizes is the constitution of temporal objects and of time itself. Husserl writes, “Objects of this kind become constituted in a multiplicity of immanent data and apprehensions, which themselves run off as a succession.” (186) Schematic objects equate to appearances and are not located within the stream of consciousness. The highest level of objectivity is the community. Further, there are two judgment contents: the noetic and noematic.
Two idea-thoughts occur: 1) sense impressions are the impressional side of the retentional side; 2) the concept of double intentionality – the intentionality of retention of the past. The consciousness of past consciousness of duration.
Husserl writes at length on these concepts:
Time-constituting phenomena … are evidently objectivities fundamentally different from those constituted in time. They are neither individual objects nor individual processes, and the predicates of such objects or processes cannot be meaningfully ascribed to them. Hence it also can make no sense to say of them … that they exist in the now and did exist previously, that they succeed one another, and so on. But no doubt we can and must say: A certain continuity of appearance—that is, a continuity that is a phase of the time-constituting flow—belongs to a now, namely, to the now that it constitutes; and to a before, namely, as that which is constitutive … of the before. (213)
Is Husserl being overly idealistic in his concept of constitution? Perhaps, but Husserl’s idealism differs from the traditional. As Zahavi illustrates, for Husserl:
Constitution is a process that unfolds itself in the structure subjectivity-world. For that reason, constitution cannot be interpreted as a contingent animation of some meaningless sense data, nor as an attempt to deduce or reduce the world from or to a worldless object. (74)
Husserl wrote on many concepts and ideas. However, it was his own personal phenomenology that set him apart from so many other philosophers, both at that time and on into the future. While his theories surrounding meaning and objects, sense data, noema and the like are addressed in these musings, many more essential Husserlian phenomenological components await discussion, among them time-consciousness, hyle, intersubjectivity, pure logic, lifeworld, transcendental idealism and so on. These and Husserl’s interrelationships, ethics, objectivity insights and impactful real-world views combine to assure Husserl a reliable place in the realm of philosophy, as well as a continuing influence in numerous fields and among many philosophers, thinkers and scholars.
Scott C. Holstad has authored 60+ books with such publishers as HarperCollins, Sterling House, Chiron Review Press, Lummox Press, Texas Review Press, Gothic Press, Longman & Pearson. He has appeared in the Minnesota Review, Exquisite Corpse, Pacific Review, Santa Clara Review, Long Shot, Wormwood Review, Chiron Review, Kerouac Connection, Palo Alto Review, Wisconsin Review, Lullwater Review, Southern Review, Arkansas Review, San Pedro River Review, Gangan Verlag, Sivullinen, Ink Sweat & Tears, Mad Swirl, Misfit, Bristol Noir, The Beatnik Cowboy, PULP, WIREWORM, Synchronized Chaos, Horror Sleaze Trash, Ashville Poetry Review & Poetry Ireland Review.
He holds degrees from the University of Tennessee, California State University Long Beach, UCLA & Queens University of Charlotte. He currently lives near Gettysburg PA.
Please share your thoughts about the future of literature.
Literature, as a human expression, is in constant evolution. As we move toward a digital and globalized future, literature continues to expand its boundaries, adopting new formats like ebooks, interactive narratives, and virtual platforms. However, I believe its essence remains intact: to tell stories, express emotions, and share human experiences.
I think the future of literature will also be shaped by cultural diversity, the inclusion of previously marginalized voices, and accessible knowledge. While some fear that new technologies may overshadow the depth and rigor of traditional literature, I believe these tools can be used to bring literary works to a broader audience.
As both a poet and a translator, I feel that translation has a great impact on cultural exchange, and poetry around the world somehow preserves beauty and humanity in this chaotic and fast-paced world.
When did you start writing?
I started writing poetry at the age of 15. I would jot down random images, describing what I saw and how I felt about it. At the time, these were merely disconnected images, but later, I began to give them more coherence. That was my process of creative discovery.
The Good and the Bad. Who is winning nowadays?
Good and evil are complex and relative concepts that have coexisted since the beginning of humanity. The perception of who is winning depends on how and from where one observes. While acts of evil or injustice tend to be noticeable and visible, there are also countless acts of kindness, solidarity, and resilience that often go unnoticed.
Nowadays, we face global challenges such as wars, conflicts, and social inequalities, which might seem to give evil an upper hand. However, we are also witnessing inspiring movements that promote high values. I believe that instead of asking who is winning, it’s better to focus our energy on choosing to be agents of change within our own spheres of influence, no matter how small they might appear.
How many books have you written, and where can we find your books?
So far, I have written and published three poetry books:
El cuerpo de la duda (Editorial Publicarte, Caracas, Venezuela, 2013)
Transfigurar es un país que amas (Editorial Dos Islas, Miami, United States, 2020)
La larga noche de las jaurías (Editorial Nautilus, Spain, 2023)
I am currently working on a new book. Some of my books are available on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/-/es/Transfigurar-pa%C3%ADs-que-amas-Editorial/dp/B08L8ZHHYH
The book. E-book or Hardcover book. What will be the future?
I believe the future of books should not be seen as a competition between electronic and hardcover formats; I think both can coexist. E-books offer advantageous accessibility, while hardcover books provide a tactile and emotional experience that many readers (myself included) deeply appreciate. In my particular case, I value hardcover books immensely. They occupy a special place in my home and in my life; I treasure them as art objects, as part of a great historical and cultural heritage, and, of course, for the unique sensory experience they provide.
A wish for 2025.
My wish for 2025 is for humanity to move toward a more just, equitable, and peaceful future. I hope we find more reasons to unite than to divide and that every person has the opportunity to achieve their dreams in peace and harmony. On a personal level, I also hope for a year of growth, creativity, and gratitude.
A phrase from your book:
“The hand in the shadow possesses almost everything,
but it will always thirst
for what it cannot take from you.
Your resistance, your love,
your unique fire,
unextinguishable.”
Mariela Cordero. Valencia, Venezuela. She is a lawyer, poet, writer, and translator, and has received several literary distinctions. She has published the poetry collections: El cuerpo de la duda (Editorial Publicarte, Caracas, Venezuela, 2013), Transfigurar es un país que amas (Editorial Dos Islas, Miami, United States, 2020), and La larga noche de las jaurías (Editorial Nautilus, Spain, 2023).
Our civilized in wild tongue lick the vegetables; blood the pepper,
Giant enough to sting scorpion’s up our Stone’s
Yes Snippers wounds
BUT of the war of gods whom are strange and we slice our hands to lick,
Chanting crocodiles into our regions.
Strangers peep into the ocean bid of bowls as vegetable visit the bar on their tongue,
The motherboard gathers us in a destination where gorilla of new society are stock in the belly of females keep debating for whom birth it out
When the boy to seep from the cup of lit thick and the moon of ceaseless flowing river
Rushes down to the toe of an elephant,
Maybe our nightmares will drives us Long to where I birth out new baby
That will wipe away our scars in tears
And cleanse the raw looking of Old dining ( poverty)
I am devolution and revolution,
If am in the stage of first, I flash my network to sands of years back
How our images are reap God
and the thinking that laid in our neutral network now
Are deads then, if am the couplets
I envision tomorrow folding thousand days together
And I junction to a flower environment where I lick binta sugar
And it voice to me of
” Introduce your ash to him”
Clinging her hands to a light
And i hug her words as I pour out our challenges to. Yes he paved anew
Idris Sheikh Musa (Newborn Poet) is a prominent Nigerian writer from the heart of Minna. A member of Hill Top Creative Art Foundation (HCAF) national headquarters along David Mark Road, Minna, Niger state. He has some of his works published in magazines such as Legend International, Synchronized Chaos, Ikeke Art, and the Kalahari Review.
