Zheng Xiaoqiong

(China, 1980) is a poet. In 2001 she moved to Dongguan, one of southern China's major industrial centres, hoping for a better life. There, she worked in several factories and started writing poems about the experience. Through her penetrating work, Zheng grew into an icon: she has published about ten poetry collections, is one of China's most renowned poets, wins many prizes, and has been translated into many languages. With their strong contrasts, personifications and broken phrases, Zheng's poems show industrialization turns humans into part of the machinery. She counters this dehumanization with human uncertainty, fragmentation, dislocation and vulnerability. Her poetry collections published in English include Huangma Mountains, Collected Poems of Zheng Xiaoqiong, Pedestrian Bridge, and Poems Falling on Machines.