FOUR POEMS

Cyril Wong is a "confessional poet." That means he writes honest and sensitive stories. They are often about relationships and fragile human connections. They seem to come from his own life. After completing an advanced degree in English literature, Wong has received many significant awards and global recognition for his numerous poems, short stories, and novels. 

Wong is also a gay poet. This is noteworthy because Singapore is a conservative country and homosexuality remains illegal there. This has led to many challenges in his career, especially censorship. However, his writing presents a universal appeal in its themes of relationships, love and loss, isolation and alienation. 

In a 2017 edition of The Arkansas International, Wong describes similar contradictions of Singapore literature, including its use of English:

"Singapore is an island-city in a pathological state of survivalist panic. But with fear comes pragmatism and robotic adaptability. The British ruled us. So did the Japanese. The island formed part of the Federation of Malaysia from 1963 before its independence in 1965. Singapore can be 'cosmopolitan,' but only for practical reasons; we must do business and 'play well' with others. Our multiculturalism is a source of both pride and painful cynicism. Its national language is tokenistically Malay, with Mandarin and Tamil as other officialized 'mother tongues'; Chinese dialects to Indian languages are thus sidelined. For better or worse, English—neither consistently British nor American, much to the bemusement of outsiders or newcomers determined to 'correct' our pronunciation, our ever-modifiable syntax—is becoming the language of all our dreams.

"English is a fraught and widening bridge between our cultures. Not everyone is happy about this, of course. Literature in English has become an efficient way to know and connect us as the language is unceasingly adaptable, reflecting the accelerated rate at which Singapore develops. With progress, somebody is always left behind. Literature is also a way of archiving stories and values either abandoned or repressed. We still suffer censorship. Political opposition is far from tolerated. Minorities have much to say about being minorities. Literature records the wounds of such suffering; that is, if censorship—even self-censorship—hasn't done its dirty 'whitewashing' work. We are highly contradictory—these contradictions vary from day to day."

REFLECT:  In what ways might censorship influence an author's writing?

Singapore is a city and a country.  It is on a tropical island off the southern tip of the Malay peninsula. A Malay trading port known as Temasek existed on the island of Singapore by the 14th century. The settlement changed hands several times over the centuries. It was eventually burned in the 17th century. The British established modern Singapore as a trading colony on the site in 1819. It joined the Malaysian Federation in 1963, but it became independent two years later. Today, Singapore has about 5 million people from four major communities: Chinese (75%) Malay, Indian, and Eurasian. 

Singapore is one of the world's most wealthy countries. It has strong international trading links. Foreign workers play a significant role in its economy. In fact, the Singapore government says that by 2030, immigrants will make up more than half of the population.

Singapore is also a very conservative country. For example, there are strict laws around alcohol, smoking, and drugs. Permits are required for outdoor gatherings, and approval is needed for a foreigner to give a presentation on topics such as race, religion, and politics. Even people who sing in public, feed pigeons, or forget to flush the toilet can receive fines. More serious crimes might receive caning (beat with a cane as punishment) or even execution (death).

English is one of four official languages in Singapore along with Mandarin Chinese, Malay, and Tamil. For a long time, it was the lingua franca. That means it was a common language among various ethnic groups who spoke other languages. Now, the use of English as a primary language is growing, however. According to Language Magazine, "Census data from the city-state was released in mid-June, showing that English is now the predominant language in the country—that is, a plurality (48.3% of residents) of the highly multilingual city-state use English as their primary language. ...  In 2010, just 32.3% of Singaporeans used English as their primary language at home, but now nearly half the city-state uses it."

REFLECT:  Why is the use of English growing in a country that has a population that is mostly Chinese? 

1. Writers, especially poets, often use symbolism in their stories. A symbol is a thing that represents another thing, idea, or quality. What do you think windows might symbolize in the poem "Close All the Windows"?
   
   

2. In the poem "The Laundry Can Wait", the author repeats the same line at the end of each stanza (a kind of paragraph in poetry). It says: "There will be plenty of time for sleep." Why does he repeat this, and what do you think it means?
   
   

3. In the poem "Boats", will the couple break up? Why or why not?
   
   

4. In the poem "Restaurant", what is the author's opinion about memory? How do you know?

1. Visit the author's Instagram page. What can you learn about him from his social media posts?
   
   

2. In 2014, Wong performed a rendition of his poem "Boats" at the Singapore Literature Festival in New York. His poem is mixed with music and writing by fellow poets Tania De Rozario and Pooja Nansi. How does this change his work?
   
   

3. Wong is a gay poet, but his work can be enjoyed by everyone. Explain.
   
   

4. A journalist in The Straits Times remarked how Wong "reads his poetry without drama, like he's just talking to you." Do you agree? And how does this affect the way you listen to his poems?