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Self-Addressing: A X-Cultural Poem 
By Changming Yuan

 

In English, the speaker always uses

A proper pronoun to address self

In Chinese, the speaker calls self

More than one hundred different names

 

In English, there is a distinction between

The subject and object case of self

In Chinese, there is no change in writing

Be it a subject or an object

 

In English, the writer spells self with one

Single straight capitalized letter

In Chinese, the writer adds to the character

‘Pursuit’ a stroke symbolizing something

 

In English, “I” ask for democracy, freedom

Individuality, rule of law, among others

In Chinese, “我” is habitually avoided in making

A reply, either in writing or in speaking

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