This week I read an account of a Song loyalist being stuck with Mongols and trying to escape. I found it interesting how it can be difficult to distinguish between truth and fiction in these kinds of autobiographical stories because a lot of the text is focused on events that did happen to him and he was going through, but it’s the way he talks about the events where the bias comes through. When Wen Tianxiang says he saw “several thousand Northern cavalry heading to the west,” you can question whether he actually saw that many, but it’s certain that he saw some.
I also finished my third show and tell. I am happy with how this one came out as I got to share some important poetry of the Tang in an interesting way. Getting to work in class definitely helped out as I didn’t have to rush and compromise anything I wanted to do.
Next week I’ll start thinking about my last show and tell and find something for Zotero.
