Compendium of Hong Kong Literature 1919-1949

Introduction

Hong Kong literary workers had the idea of compiling a compendium of Hong Kong literature in as early as the 1980s. It was not materialized until 2009, when our Center Director Professor Leonard Chan Kwok Kou and Co-Director Dr. Chan Chi Tak brought up the idea to some local scholars. An editorial committee was formed, and the project of Compendium of Hong Kong Literature 1919-1949 was launched. The project took five years. Hong Kong’s first literary compendium, published by the Commercial Press, appeared in 2014-2016.

Each of the twelve volumes of Compendium of Hong Kong Literature 1919-1949 is edited by a local scholar who is a specialist of the area. The Compendium retrieved many early literary works, which were buried in time. There is an “Introduction” in each volume, written by the editor. This part explains the ideas and principles behind the selection process, and offers guidance to readers and valuable historical information to researchers. Following the legacy of Compendium of Modern Chinese Literature, the volumes are divided according to genre. To highlight the characteristic feature of Hong Kong literature, three volumes are dedicated to Classical-Style Literature, popular literature and children literature, respectively. The Compendium exhibits the diversity and multi-dimensionality of early Hong Kong literature. It has a meaning which is closely relevant with, but not limited to, local culture.

Compendium of Hong Kong Literature 1919-1949 Modern Poetry Editor: Chan Chi Tak

This volume collects modern poems published in Hong Kong before 1949. The works selected first appeared in 1925-1949, years covering the pre-war period, Anti-Japanese War and the beginning of the post-war era. It aims to present works of different schools and styles written in different periods. An equal emphasis is placed on artistic value and documentary significance. Some poems collected are Ou Wai-ou’s 鷗外鷗 “The Cornerstone of Peace” 和平的礎石, Li Yu-zhong’s李育中 “North Point, the City of Victoria” 維多利亞市北角, Chen Can-yun’s 陳殘雲 “Scattered Songs on the Shore” 海濱散曲, Liu Huo-zi’s 劉火子 “In the City, at Noon” 都市的午景, Yuan Shui-pai’s袁水拍 “The Ladder-shape Concrete Hill Street” 梯形的石屎山街, He Cheng-jiang’s何浧江 “Night of a City” 都市的夜, Huang Yu’s 黃雨 “The Southorn Playground at Dusk” 蕭頓球場的黃昏, Sha Ou’s 沙鷗 “The Wet Market” 菜場. The poems sketch out the long disappeared streetscape of the Hong Kong city in the 1930s and 40s. They are also historical records that convey the poets’ vision, critical ideas and imagination.

Compendium of Hong Kong Literature 1919-1949 Prose I
Editor: Fan Sin Piu

This is an anthology of prose essays written from the mid-1920s till 1941, the beginning of the Japanese occupation period. The works selected are taken mainly from literary supplements of Hong Kong newspapers and periodicals; a small number are taken from books. It includes works of writers born and raised in Hong Kong, such as Xie Chen-guang 謝晨光 and Lu-Lun 侶倫, as well as South-bound writers who came to Hong Kong for temporary residence or long-term abode, for example Mao Dun茅盾, Ye Ling-feng 葉靈鳳. While the former group of writers are inarguably “Hong Kong writers,” the latter also contributed greatly to Hong Kong’s cultural environment and literary atmosphere. Both are critical for “Hong Kong literature” and are not to be neglected. This volume offers a wide selection of aesthetic writings, short sketches, miscellaneous articles, features, newsletters etc., the topics of which cover local and foreign issues. The book aims to present the different visages of early Hong Kong prose writings. Supplemented with an introduction, it is hoped that the work will deepen readers’ understanding of the changes in the genre and the works’ production mechanism during the period.

Compendium of Hong Kong Literature 1919-1949 Prose II
Editor: Ngai Ling Tun

This is a collection of prose essays published in Hong Kong newspapers and personal anthologies from 1942 to 1949, years of Japanese Occupation and the Post-war period. Covering works of both local and South-bound writers, the essays collected are of a diversity of types, such as argumentative, narrative, reminiscent (of people), lyrical, expository (of feelings), descriptive (things and scenery). By reading this book, readers can understand more about early local prose and the literary ecology of local newspapers and magazines in the 1940s. They can go on to contemplate the unique historical situation of Hong Kong as a cultural center situated away from the mainland at that time.

Compendium of Hong Kong Literature 1919-1949 Classical-Style Literature Editor: Ching Chung Shan

During the 100-plus years from the opening of the commercial port to the Minguo period, a number of masters of classical-style literature emerged in Hong Kong and they accomplished many high-quality works. Newspaper men and merchants such as Wang Tao 王韜, Peng Feisheng 潘飛聲and Chen Buchi 陳步墀wrote with late-Qing elegance; literary men of the New Territories and members of the Revolutionary Party voiced their ideas with passionate words. In the beginning of the Minguo period, Chen Botao 陳伯陶, Lai Jixi 賴際熙and other old adherents of the Qing dynasty had their literary gatherings in Sung Wong Toi, and poets such as Cai Zhefu 蔡哲夫, Deng Erya 鄧爾雅, Yang Tiefu 楊鐵夫, Liu Boduan 劉伯端formed their own literary societies. During the anti-war years, Ye Gongchuo 葉恭綽, Yang Yunshi 楊雲史, Li Xianyin 李仙銀, Chen Xiaowei 陳孝威and others attempted to save the country with literature. Feng Jiankui 馮漸逵and Huang Weibo 黃偉伯were among those who tried to write history using poems during the Japanese Occupation period. Following the political change in 1949, Chen Zhanquan 陳湛銓, Wu Tianren 吳天任 and many more moved to Hong Kong. A number of poetic societies were established. Qianshe 潛社, Beishan shishe 北山詩社, Zhengsheng yinshe 正聲吟社, Qianchun she 千春社, Shuoguo she 碩果社 were amongst those most active in promoting traditional Chinese culture.

This book is a collection of classical-style literary works written between 1843 and 1949. It focuses on poetry and poetic prose, but also touches briefly on classical essays. The works are in a diversity of forms and styles. For example, there are pieces written in Tang style as well as Song style; some revolve around Chinese ideas and some are more Western. Topics include the home country, poetry gatherings, and life’s ups and downs. Hong Kong’s situation and disasters in the homeland are vividly portrayed; some examples are the plague, the racecourse fire, the Canton-Hong Kong Strike and the War.

Compendium of Hong Kong Literature 1919-1949 Popular Literature Editor: Wong Chung Ming

Popular literature has long been regarded as marginal literature. This book aims to correct this view by carefully selecting outstanding popular works published in a wide time span from late-Qing to 1949. A variety of novels are chosen, including romance, martial, detective, tiankong xiaoshuo (radio stories) etc. Modern adaptations of old literary sketches, Yue ou (粵謳 Cantonese love songs), long zhou (龍舟 dragon boat songs), ban ben (班本 lyrics of Cantonese opera songs) and other works are also collected. The pieces collected are written in a range of writing styles, for example wen yan (文言 classical literary), bai hua (白話 colloquial), Cantonese, san ji di (三及第 a mix of classical, colloquial and Cantonese). The works are arranged in chronological order, with an aim of facilitating understanding of the relationship between inheritance and changes in the development of our local popular literature over time. Aside from its artistic value, the collection is also a rich source of information for sociology, folklore studies, economics, linguistics, literary reception theory and other areas. With a unique content, this book exhibits the special qualities of writings of Hong Kong writers in different periods.

Compendium of Hong Kong Literature 1919-1949 Children Literature Editor: Fok Yuk Ying

This book is comprised of works of children literature published during the period between the mid-1930s and the end of the 1940s. While most of the pieces are collected from Xin ertong (新兒童 New Children), works from children’s section of newspapers and a small amount of books are also selected.

The works are mainly written by South-bound writers, such as Xu Dishan 許地山, Huang Qingyun 黃慶雲, Lu Zhicheng 呂志澄, Ou Waiou 鷗外鷗, Hu Mingshu 胡明樹, Xu Zhiren 許穉人. Embellished with a variety of drawings, the book covers theoretical discussions, poetry, fairy tales, stories, drama, fables and cartoons. It offers a clear picture of the development of children literature in early Hong Kong, and the children and childhood presented in the pieces reflect the way adults living in that particular socio-cultural context understand children, childhood and children literature.

Editorial Committee of Compendium of Hong Kong Literature 1919-1949

Editor-in-Chief: Leonard Chan Kwok Kou

Vice Editor-in Chief: Chan Chi Tak

Members: Chan Chi Tak, Leonard Chan Kwok Kou, Fan Sin Piu, Huang zi-ping, Ngai Ling Tun, Wong Chung Ming (in alphabetical order)

Editors

1 Modern Poetry

Chan Chi Tak
(Associate Professor, Department of Literary and Cultural Studies, the Education University of Hong Kong)

2 Prose I

Fan Sin Piu
(Associate Professor, Department of Chinese Language and Literature, the Chinese University of Hong Kong)

3 Prose II

Ngai Ling Tun
(Associate Professor, Department of Chinese Language and Literature, the Chinese University of Hong Kong)

4 Fiction I

Tse Hiu Hung
(Assistant Professor, Department of Humanities and Creative Writing, Hong Kong Baptist University)

5 Fiction II

Wong Nim Yan
(Associate Professor, Department of Chinese Language and Literature, the Chinese University of Hong Kong)

6 Drama

Lo Wai Luk
(Associate Professor, Academy of Film, Hong Kong Baptist University)

7 Literary Criticism I

Leonard Chan Kwok Kou
(Chair Professor, Faculty of Humanities, the Education University of Hong Kong)

8 Literary Criticism II

Lin Manshu
(Chief Editor, Wenxue Pinglun [Literary Criticism])

9 Classical-Style Literature

Ching Chung Shan
(Senior Lecturer, Department of Chinese Language and Literature, the Chinese University of Hong Kong)

10 Popular Literature

Wong Chung Ming
(Associate Professor, Journalism and Communication Department, Hong Kong Shue Yan University)

11 Children Literature

Fok Yuk Ying
(Associate Professor, the Education University of Hong Kong)

12 Reference Materials

Chan Chi Tak
(Associate Professor, Department of Literary and Cultural Studies, the Education University of Hong Kong)

13 A Collection of Introductory Essays

Chan Kwok Kou, Chan Chi Tak et al.

Advisors

Chen Ping-yuan, Huang zi-ping, Li Ou-fan, David Wang Der-wei, Xu zi-dong (in alphabetical order)