The Man with the Compound Eyes by Wu Ming-Yi

The proliferation of studies bearing on the intellectual movement known as the 'new materialisms' evinces that a material turn is becoming an important paradigm in environmental humanities.

To explore how Wu’s ideal way of writing functions to liberate readers from their present reality, this paper studies Wu’s two English-translated novels The Man with the Compound Eyes and The Stolen Bicycle in light of his innovative dealing with materiality.KeywordsWu Ming-Yi In his novel The Man with the Compound Eyes, the function of literature is embodied in the man with the compound eyes in the novel: something that exists merely to “observe, not intervene”-but of course, though not intervening into the operation of the world, literary visions embodied in the man with the compound eyes still function to emancipate readers from their present reality and change the world paradoxically. But while most readers’ attentions to his works are drawn to the environmental subjects and ecological issues, this paper is focused on discussing the writer’s concerns with the function and the form of literary representation. Having written many fiction and non-fiction works on Nature, environmental and ecological issues and practically participated in related activities, he is generally identified as an environmental writer and activist. Wu Ming-Yi (吳明益) is one of the few prestigious contemporary Taiwanese writers whose works have won many international awards since their translations into different languages from Chinese.

The Man with the Compound Eyes by Wu Ming-Yi