How Raising a Multilingual Tot Helped Me Write a Multicultural Novel
When he was three, my son often said his heart was wounded. The reasons for these heart wounds were varied: someone didn’t want to be his best friend; I accidentally swept his latest artistic masterpiece into the recycling bin; we
Résumé
Child’s heart wound
The author’s three-year-old son often described his sadness as a wounded heart in Mandarin.
In Mandarin, the word for 'sad' is formed by combining the characters for 'wound' (伤) and 'heart' (心), creating 伤心.
The child’s literal translation reflected his perspective on minor frustrations, such as losing a friendship, a drawing, or bananas, as deeply impactful events.
This moment highlighted the poetic and literal differences between languages, as the author realized her son was not being melodramatic but accurately translating his emotions from Mandarin to English.
The experience underscored how language shapes the way we perceive and express feelings.
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