Abstract: Illness，suffering，pain，and trauma often lead to borderline experiences(Grenzerfahrungen)，an environment within which we become conscious of our own limitations and vulnerabilities. Literary madness—the representation of fictional characters and of the poetic voice suffering from mental illness or psychic trauma—artfully articulates such experiences. Through a variety of forms，metaphors，and structures，it can express subjective pain and collective trauma，relay the experience of illness，and offer individual and social insight into the larger contexts of health，disease，and identity. Moreover，I argue that in Guo Lusheng and Wen Jie’ s cases（and very likely many other cases as well），the delight of writing poetry about one’ s illness lies less in the attempt at expressing a subjective experience than in finding the devices and forms that integrate individual experience into a collective one，be that one of sorrow and suffering，or of a specific lyrical tradition and versification. There are other Chinese poets who occasionally write about madness or mental illness from various perspectives，but Guo Lusheng and Wen Jie have written poetry that courageously represents their suffering and have become metaphors unto themselves: metaphors of discord within themselves，of the vulnerability of health，body，and mind，and of a sharpened identity struggle in the quest for belonging.

Key words: Shi Zhi；Guo Lusheng, Wen Jie, Modern Chinese Poetry, Mental Illness, the poetics of illness, Illness as Metaphor