The Heathen Chinee

"The Heathen Chinee" is a narrative poem published for the first time as "Plain Language from Truthful James" in September 1870 in The Overland Monthly, a San Francisco, USA magazine. It was written as a parody of Algernon Charles Swinburne's Atalanta in Calydon (1865), and satirized anti-Chinese sentiment in northern California.

The poem was frequently republished. To Harte's dismay, the poem reinforced racism among his readers instead of challenging it as he intended. Nevertheless, he returned to the character years later. The poem also inspired or influenced several adaptations.


 * Plain Language from Truthful James: Original publication, and original title, in The Overland Monthly, September 1870.
 * The Heathen Chinee (1871): Version illustrated by S. Eytinge, Jr. (claimed to be the only illustrated version with the author's sanction).