For many people, “what’s your ethnicity?” is a simple, sometimes even a one-word answer. But for Canadian-born Fred Wah, his Swedish, Chinese, Irish, and Scottish descent complicates the response to a seemingly basic question. In Wah’s Diamond Grill, he uses a mix of prose and poetry to make up what he refers to as a biofiction, which is a similar version of the more commonly known biotext. Within this biotext, Wah uses semi-falsified anecdotes to illustrate his life as a mixed race Canadian. Yet, his writing is jumbled; the sense of confusion that can come from reading Diamond Grill may represent Wah’s unclear identity, which he describes as living on the “hyphen” (178). Using Joanne Saul’s analysis of the biotext to aid in this interpretation, I look to discover how the use of a biotext can emphasize and bring attention to Wah’s message of this “hyphenation”.

Saul uses Diamond Grill as an example to describe biotexts as a hybrid version of autobiography and historical telling. While biotexts have “autobiographical intention[s]” (18), they can be seen as a different form of life writing because of the crossing of the memory, fiction, history, and autobiographical (28) aspects that come together to make up a biotext. However, Saul points out that this textual melting pot can do effective work in resisting popular frameworks of writing (13-31). When this idea is used in conjunction with the actual content in Diamond Grill, Wah’s explanation of “the hyphen” helps explain how not fitting into a specific category can be related to his use of the biotext. The biotext cannot be seen as a pure autobiography due to its use of fiction – so where does it fit?

While the biotext does not directly fit under the categories fiction, nor autobiography, Wah contributes further to the sense of “in between-ness” by writing a “biofiction” (184). Wah describes “biofiction” as life writing with origins in the biotext, but it also includes the use of imagined memories (184). Wah’s uncommon technique of life writing can be compared with his explanation of “the hyphen” as being something that does not exist in a definite category. Like Wah’s identity, he can be considered Chinese-Canadian, just Chinese, or just Canadian. A sense of belonging is unclear, which is a point Wah makes throughout Diamond Grill. When studying biotexts, a similar idea can be used – biotexts fit under autobiography, historical, and even fictional writing. The combination of these different genres makes the biotext a hybrid; like Wah, whose ethnicity is mixed enough that it becomes its own category.

Diamond Grill is a case example of Fred Wah’s slight spin on a biotext, which adds an element of uniqueness to his text. This uniqueness is also emulated in his identity, which is the central focus of his book. The resisting nature of biotext reflects how Wah’s unfitting identity resists the categories that are chosen by dominant groups. While Wah does not fit into a determined race or ethnicity, he is not alone; however, Wah chooses voices himself on this topic. Wah’s calling of attention to the “hyphenated” race allows for those of mixed races to speak for themselves and disallow others to determine which “category” people fit under. Wah’s work with the biotext allows for him to explore his own identity that resists dominant ideas; however, in a globalizing world, people like Wah may no longer need to resist dominant racial categories . Eventually, his array of ethnic backgrounds may no longer be as unique as it was during his time.

Works Cited

Saul, Joanne. Writing The Roaming Subject: Biotext In Canadian Literature. University of Toronto, 2006.

Wah, Fred.  Diamond Grill. NeWest Press, 2006.