About Me

Hi, welcome to my personal website! I am Leting Zheng, a PhD candidate in the Department of East Asian Languages & Literatures at the University of Oregon. My research interests encompass modern Chinese literature, transnational children’s studies, media (periodicals, films, and comics), visuality, and gender. My dissertation investigates the shifting cultural constructions of children’s happiness, from bourgeois fantasy in early Republican China to a propagandistic tool in Mao China. It calls for a transnational turn in children’s studies and explores the Western and East Asian influences on this project.

Regarding my background and education: I am a first-generation university student and academic in my family, born and raised in Guangdong, China. I take pride in being a feminist. I received comprehensive training in China, where my three years of master’s studies were primarily focused on premodern China. This foundation has proven invaluable for my research and teaching, providing me with a thorough understanding of Chinese history and culture, as well as the transitions from premodern to contemporary periods. I am a native Mandarin and Cantonese speaker and deeply value celebrating Cantonese culture and my Cantonese identity. Additionally, I have professional proficiency in classical Chinese, English, and Japanese (JLPT N2 certified in 2023), and limited working proficiency in Korean.