Writing Sample for Graduate Literature Program

During that summer, nine Confucians (1), including Chongyi and Jade Chen, were permitted to participate in the Capital Examination (2). Along with many others, they traveled by boat from their hometown, Qingyang, to Nanking, the capital. It was the first time these young men had traveled far from home and many became seasick within a few days of their departure. Chongyi was one of them. For most of the passage, he just laid in his berth in the humid cabin and dozed off in the midst of chaotic illusions while dozens of passengers simultaneously arrived and disembarked. Only after the ferry had entered sluggish waters were the symptoms relieved, which permitted Chongyi an opportunity to breathe fresh air on the deck.

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