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Introduction to Chinese biographical and autobiographical writing from the 2nd century B.C. to the present. Readings include "Biographies of Assassins" by China’s first historian, medieval autobiographical poetry by women, and the disturbing and provocative "Diary of a Madman." We track the development of the narrative formulas Chinese historians, poets, and novelists have deployed to commemorate exemplary figures, as well as to give their own lives shapes future readers might recognize. Topics include the nature of free will, fate, ethical action, kinship, authenticity, gender, and sexuality.