Poetic identity in second language writing: Exploring an EFL learner’s study abroad experience

Abstract

The current study investigates the way in which an English as a Foreign Language (EFL) college student writes haiku – a three line Japanese poem with a specific number of syllables in each line in a second language (L2) to express his study abroad experience. This poetic inquiry which involved literary, linguistic, and content analyses of the collection of ten haiku poems written by a Myanmarese student documented some discursive identities in relation to his study abroad experience in Japan: a Myanmarese boy who struggled with his loneliness in Japan , a teenager who was challenged in making Japanese friends and tried to develop his friendships, an international student who explored a place of his own in the society, and a college student who enjoyed his daily life with friends . This study illustrates the expressive ability of an EFL writer to communicate personal life stories through poetry writing. It also proposes the usage of poetry writing as a form of meaningful literacy learning (Hanauer, 2012) in the EFL classroom from theoretical and methodological perspectives.