Linhe Li

Linhe Li 李林壑is a Ph.D. student in premodern Chinese literature, with a focus on literary composition about the empire’s borderlands during the medieval period, particularly frontier poetry on the “Western Regions.”

My M.A. thesis, titled “Wrought into Historical Contemplation: Configuring Ruins in Early Medieval Chinese Poetry,” examined the poetic discourse of sixth-century court poets from the Southern Liang, Southern Chen, and Sui dynasties. By analyzing depictions of ruins, including cities, palaces, temples, and residences, the thesis explores how these works collect memories of the dynastic rise and fall.

At UW, I am continuing to investigate themes of displacement, migration, and travel writing in the lives of individuals, as well as the crystallization of lyrical moments within frontier poetry. I am also interested in landscape poetry, as well as religious and funerary art, which informs my broader inquiry into transcultural interactions along the ancient Silk Road.