The
melancholy of the tropics lies in believing that everything that shines gives
off warmth. The moon, a scattering of stars, a night reveling without
restraint. You never told me that even a solitary pillow in the tropics longs
for warmth.
Twenty
years ago, during a sleepless night shortly after arriving in Singapore, I
wrote these lines.
Three
months later, in the final moments of the compulsory course “Literature of the
Yuan, Ming, and Qing Dynasties,” my longing received a hesitant response. As
the song “True Heroes” played—
“Seize
every minute of life,
Give everything for the dream in our hearts.
Without weathering storms, how can we see the rainbow?
No one can succeed without effort…”
tears
glistened in seventy pairs of eager eyes. A note was passed to me. It read: “We
hope you will stay with us until we graduate.”
I
applied to extend my overseas research leave to its full term and resolved to
leave Taiwan. I sent emails to my former institution and to my colleagues in
the Chinese Division at Nanyang Technological University. The subject line was
simply: “Staying.”
I
wrote:
“Wherever
we have passed, we inevitably leave traces behind. Some leave pearls and gems;
others leave rubbish.
What,
then, can I leave behind?
It
was only after coming to Singapore that I became aware of this question and
began to contemplate it seriously.
In
deciding to stay at NTU, I believed that an academic institution would never
lack professional researchers, but the still-developing Chinese Division needed
whatever strength I could offer. Above all, I came to realise that I was
helping to nurture those who would carry forward Chinese culture and literature
in Nanyang. This was a sense of responsibility I had never experienced while
teaching in Taiwan.
Life
cannot be lived again. I hope that the choice I have made is not merely wishful
thinking.”
That
day was 9 May 2008. The Chinese Division was preparing to appoint a new head
from Australia, and I offered my views. On 11 May, I made a special visit to
“pay homage” to the “authentic” archway of Nanyang University and silently made
a wish.
I
stayed because I believed.
I
believed that a recently established Chinese Division could be built together;
I believed that Chinese-language education on this island could hold its head
high and embrace the future; and I believed that, beyond research and writing,
a teacher could still do something for a cultural community.
Now
that twenty years have passed, I often wonder: had I known then everything I
would later experience, would I still have made the same decision?
In
the years that followed, I experienced office politics, misunderstandings, and
hurt. To defend my dignity and uphold justice, I once had no choice but to seek
legal assistance and protection. Those were extremely difficult days, leaving
deep shadows imprinted upon my heart.
Looking
back today, I realise that the true reason I stayed was not because I expected
everything to proceed smoothly and according to my wishes, but because every
experience would become part of life’s unknowable unfolding.
Had
I not stayed, I would not have founded Text and Image Studies in 2014. I would
not have established the Text and Image Studies Society with like-minded
friends in 2017, nor would I have travelled this far, allowing Text and Image
Studies to grow from a research concept into an academic perspective in which
many scholars now participate and which continues to develop. Had I not stayed,
I would not have served as Head of the Chinese Division and worked with my
colleagues to plan its future development.
What
I remember most vividly from these years is not how many books I have published
or what awards I have received. It is that, after a guided tour of cultural
relics and art or a public lecture, someone will invariably come up to me and
say, “I never knew a museum could be viewed this way,” or, “I can actually
understand what a university professor is saying!”
Students
have also told me, “I never imagined that I would look forward to your
classical literature class.”
Every
time I hear these words, I feel grateful that my decision to stay was
worthwhile.
Gradually,
I came to understand that what a scholar truly leaves behind is not necessarily
her own name, but the way other people live their lives. Perhaps this has been
my greatest gain over the past twenty years.
What
Singapore has given me is not merely a workplace in which to earn a living, but
a standpoint from which to view the world.
Standing
at the confluence of different cultures, I have been able to understand China
anew, to understand East Asia anew, and, even more importantly, to understand
myself anew.
When
we are young, we are always thinking about where we should go.
Only
later do we realise that what matters more is what we leave behind, wherever we
may be.
Twenty
years ago, I stayed because someone hoped that I would stay.
Twenty
years later, I am still here. There is still much worthwhile work to pursue;
there are still many cultures whose traditions deserve to be carried forward
and renewed; and there are still many people willing to believe with me that
the humanities have not become obsolete—that reading, aesthetic appreciation,
and thought can still bring warmth to this age.
And
so, I finally understand: “staying” means slowly living oneself into a
landscape upon a piece of land, and allowing one’s faint glimmer of light to
continue illuminating the road ahead.
The
stranger who moved into a campus apartment and gazed at the tropical night sky
could never have known that, twenty years later, she would write this essay.
Today, I only wish to say softly to the person I was twenty years ago:
“It
was just right—you chose to stay.”
—In
commemoration of 16 July 2026, marking twenty years since I moved to Singapore.
18
July 2026, “The Shang Shan Ruo Shui Column,” Lianhe Zaobao, Singapore.
作者：衣若芬 I Lo-fen 英文书名：Humanities Research Methods in the Age of AIGC
#AIGC #人工智能 #人文学术 #研究方法 #学术写作 #数字人文 #文图学 #衣若芬
As AIGC becomes increasingly involved in information retrieval, reading, image analysis, academic writing, and knowledge dissemination, how should humanities scholars make use of this new productive force while preserving critical inquiry, verification, scholarly judgment, and academic responsibility?
In this video, Professor I Lo-fen introduces the central ideas of her book, Humanities Research Methods in the Age of AIGC. She examines how AI is transforming humanities research and argues that what remains truly irreplaceable is not merely the ability to write, but the capacity to discover meaningful questions, retain interpretive agency, and assume responsibility for scholarly judgment.
The book discusses how AIGC can assist with research, reading, analysis, writing, and communication; which tasks may be delegated to AI and which must remain the responsibility of the researcher; how to verify AI-generated information and references; how to document human–AI collaboration; and how to preserve academic integrity and scholarly agency in a rapidly changing technological environment.
AI may help us move faster, but research methodology enables us to understand where we are going.
Humanities Research Methods in the Age of AIGC is now officially released and available for order. The special publication price is valid until 31 July 2026.
Today, July 14, 2026, at 10:00 a.m., the first batch of Humanities Research Methods in the Age of AIGC e-books will be emailed to readers who have placed their orders.
I wrote this book to address a serious question: As AIGC becomes part of data collection, reading, image analysis, writing, and dissemination, how can humanities scholars make use of this new productive power while preserving their critical awareness, ability to verify information, academic judgment, and sense of responsibility?
Tools can help us move faster, while research methods help us understand where we are going.
Readers in the first batch are kindly reminded to check their email inboxes after 10:00 a.m. today.
Readers who have already placed an order but have not yet emailed the Text and Image Studies Association are requested to do so as soon as possible.
Orders remain open. Please scan the QR code on the poster to place your order.
The book has been published ahead of schedule, and the special promotional price is available until July 31, 2026.
