Zhuming Yao

Zhuming Yao is a scholar of classical Chinese literature of the early and early imperial eras (ca. tenth century BCE – third century CE). He is particularly interested in the intersections of textual and literary criticism, of poetics and hermeneutics, and of book and literary history. In his research and teaching, Zhuming draws broadly from other literary traditions, aiming to foster dialogues between early Chinese studies and the larger field of comparative antiquity.

Zhuming’s current book project examines speech representation across early Chinese writings and offers an account of the underlying poetics of this prominent rhetorical exercise favored by poets, historians, and philosophers alike. The project highlights writing’s role in constructing the discursive appeal of the oral form, an approach that reconceptualizes the relationship between writing and orality in early China.

Zhuming’s other research focus centers on the issues of authenticity, first-person voice, and philological “curatorship” of literary writings. His first essay in these directions is forthcoming at T’oung Pao (2024) as “Beyond Authenticity: Genre, Rhetoric, and the Iterability of Shangshu Speeches.”

Before joining BU, Zhuming received his PhD from Princeton University (2023) and taught for a year at Swarthmore College. Outside of research, Zhuming translates English scholarship for readers in China.