Summary

Li dreams of being back in Beijing but the dream is in English, not Chinese. When Li chose to pursue her writing career in English, her husband asked her if she understood "what it meant to renounce [her] mother tongue" (138). Li feels that "the intimacy between one and one's mother tongue can demand more than one is willing to give, or what one is capable of giving" (139). Li's choice to disown her native language is her private salvation. The change from one language to another feels natural to her, although others often question her decision or fail to understand it. Li feels that her "abandonment of [her] first language is personal, so deeply personal that [she resists] any interpretation" (141).

Throughout her career, Li has had to deal with criticism for her decision to write in English. Some...