Contagion and Dissemination An Immunological Reading of Chang Kuei-hsing's Elephant Herd

Taking inspiration from Priscilla Wald's analysis of an influential contemporary "outbreak narrative"-and specifically a set of narratives that place the spread of infectious disease within a set of implicit North-South oppositions-this essay examines how Chang Kuei-hsing's 1998 novel Elephant Herd (Qunxiang) characterizes the spread of Communist ideology and influence in Sarawak. In particular, this essay proposes that the novel uses two types of animals, elephants and crocodiles, to present two very different attitudes toward the region's Communist guerilla fighters. Over the course of the novel, the characterization of each of these two sets of animals-as well as of the guerilla fighters themselves-is strategically inverted.

Duke Scholars

Author Carlos Rojas Asian & Middle Eastern Studies