The Flows of Transnationalism, Shifting Identities, and Relationships In-The-Making

Abstract

In this chapter, the author explores the identity politics of a curriculum scholar with an “international” background, drawing upon poststructuralist, feminist autobiographical inquiry inspired by Janet Miller. He navigates tensions between national and transnational subjectivities and theorizes subjectivity as fluid, relational, and politically situated. Through the image and metaphor of a “bird with two heads sharing the same destiny 共命之鳥 (Gong-myung-jih-joh; 공명지조),” the author articulates interdependence and relationality across selves-others. Although their approaches may differ, Miller, Butler, and Laozi share a commitment to theorizing co-existence, co-reliance, and co-living in the midst of racial and political divisions. He applies autobiographical reflexivity to interrogate the construction of “Asian-ness” amid rising antiAsian violence and invisibility of visibility of Asians in racial justice discourse. The author challenges essentialized, static categories of identity and calls for a curriculum theory that encourages multiplicity, discomfort, and the aesthetics of unknowingness. Drawing from both Taoist thought and relational subjectivity, he extends transnational curriculum studies by suggesting epistemological, ontological, and methodological frameworks that resist any form of binary, essentialized, stereotypical logic. This chapter honors Miller’s intellectual legacy, particularly her efforts to support all students and disrupt dominant discourses in curriculum theories and practices.