Born during the Qing Dynasty in China, Wang Zhenyi defied the gender stereotypes of her era to become an acclaimed astronomer and renowned poet. Despite never receiving a formal education, Zhenyi tore through the volumes of books in her grandfather’s library, journeyed across China with her father, and learned about poetry from her grandmother. Aware of the social inequalities of her day, Zhenyi worked hard to make math and science accessible to all, and in her hundreds of poems and verses, she wrote critically of the gap between the rich and the poor—as well as between men and women. [This episode originally aired June 2021.]

About the Narrator

Serena Yang (she/her) is a 19 year old poet, writer, and first-generation Chinese American immigrant raised in Queens, New York. She believes that imagination and storytelling is critical to justice work and writes, always, with the knowledge that a better world is possible. Serena is the 2021 NYC Youth Poet Laureate, a program of Urban Word, and a National Youth Poet Laureate finalist and ambassador representing the Northeast.

Credits

This podcast is a production of Rebel Girls. It’s based on the book series Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls. This episode was produced by Isaac Kaplan-Woolner. Sound design and mixing by Camille Stennis. This episode was written by Alexis Stratton. Executive producer is Katie Sprenger. Original theme music was composed and performed by Elettra Bargiacchi. A special thanks to the whole Rebel Girls team who make this podcast possible! Please rate and review this episode, and share it with your friends.