Pauline Yu (; born 1949) is an American scholar of Chinese literature and culture noted for her contributions to the study of classical Chinese poetry and comparative literature. She is also known for her research and advocacy on issues in the humanities. Yu serves on the Henry Luce Foundation's board of directors.

Early life and education

Yu was born in 1949 in

Rochester, New York Rochester is a city in and the county seat, seat of government of Monroe County, New York, United States. It is the List of municipalities in New York, fourth-most populous city and 10th most-populated municipality in New York, with a populati ...

, to two recent immigrants from

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

, Paul N. Yu, a cardiologist who was later elected president of the

American Heart Association The American Heart Association (AHA) is a nonprofit organization in the United States that funds cardiovascular medical research, educates consumers on healthy living and fosters appropriate Heart, cardiac care in an effort to reduce disability ...

; and I Ling Tang, a pediatrician. Her account of her father's funeral in

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...

was published in ''The American Scholar'' in 2013. Yu attended public schools in the Rochester suburb of Brighton and was inducted into the first class of the Brighton High School Hall of Fame in 2006. Yu received her B.A. in modern French and German history and literature from

Radcliffe College Radcliffe College was a Women's colleges in the United States, women's Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Cambridge, Massachusetts, that was founded in 1879. In 1999, it was fully incorporated into Harvard Colle ...

. While in college she studied for a year at the

Free University of Berlin The Free University of Berlin (, often abbreviated as FU Berlin or simply FU) is a public university, public research university in Berlin, Germany. It was founded in West Berlin in 1948 with American support during the early Cold War period a ...

. She received her M.A. and Ph.D. in comparative literature from

Stanford University Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...

Career

Yu taught at the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota Twin Cities (historically known as University of Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint ...

from 1976 to 1985, at

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

from 1985 to 1989, and was founding chair of the Department of East Asian Languages and Literature at the

University of California, Irvine The University of California, Irvine (UCI or UC Irvine) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Irvine, California, United States. One of the ten campuses of the University of California system, U ...

from 1989 to 1994. Yu was dean of humanities in the College of Letters and Science at the

University of California, Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school the ...

and professor of East Asian languages and cultures from 1994 to 2003. She is the recipient of fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation (1983) and the

American Council of Learned Societies The American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS) is a private, nonprofit federation of 75 scholarly organizations in the humanities and related social sciences founded in 1919. It is best known for its fellowship competitions which provide a ra ...

(1983). Her article "'Your Alabaster in This Porcelain': Judith Gautier’s ''Le livre de jade''" received the William Riley Parker Prize for best PMLA article of 2007. A fellow of the

American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (The Academy) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, and other ...

, Yu is on the Academy's national Commission on the Humanities & Social Sciences. She is an elected member of the

American Philosophical Society The American Philosophical Society (APS) is an American scholarly organization and learned society founded in 1743 in Philadelphia that promotes knowledge in the humanities and natural sciences through research, professional meetings, publicat ...

and Committee of 100, the Board of Directors of both the Teagle Foundation and the Chiang Ching-Kuo Foundation for International Scholarly Exchange, and the Kluge Scholars' Council of the

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is a research library in Washington, D.C., serving as the library and research service for the United States Congress and the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It also administers Copyright law o ...

. Yu was a member of the Board of Trustees of the

National Humanities Center The National Humanities Center (NHC) is an independent institute for advanced study in the humanities located in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, United States. The NHC operates as a privately incorporated nonprofit and is not part of any uni ...

from 2000 to 2019. From 2003 to 2019, Yu served as president of the

(ACLS), an organization created to represent and support scholars and scholarship in the humanities. She was awarded a

National Humanities Medal The National Humanities Medal is an American award that annually recognizes several individuals, groups, or institutions for work that has "deepened the nation's understanding of the humanities, broadened our citizens' engagement with the humani ...

in 2022.

Personal life

Yu was married to Theodore D. Huters from 1975 to 2000. They have three children and three grandchildren.

Select publications

*''Ways with Words: Writing about Reading Texts from Early China'', co-ed. Berkeley and L.A.: University of California Press, 2000 *''Culture and State in Chinese History: Conventions, Accommodations, and Critiques'', co-ed. Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1997 *''Voices of the Song Lyric in China'', sole ed. and contributor. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1994. *''The Reading of Imagery in the Chinese Poetic Tradition''. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1987. *''The Poetry of Wang Wei: New Translations and Commentary''. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1980.Read online at https://publish.iupress.indiana.edu/projects/the-poetry-of-wang-wei

References

External links

*
Archive
. UCLA Center for East Asian Studies, UCLA International Institute/International Studies Overseas Programs (ISOP),

. {{DEFAULTSORT:Yu, Pauline 1949 births American academics of Chinese descent American women academics American writers of Chinese descent Columbia University faculty Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences Free University of Berlin alumni Harvard College alumni Living people Members of the Committee of 100 People from Rochester, New York Stanford University alumni University of California, Irvine faculty University of California, Los Angeles faculty University of Minnesota faculty Members of the American Philosophical Society 21st-century American women Presidents of the American Council of Learned Societies American sinologists