Bulletin No. 2, 2009

Our Humanities Scholars   Bei Dao’s relationship with CUHK began in 1983 when the CUHK journal Renditions translated and published the works of budding Chinese poets, including him. In 1985 the Chinese University Press published the Chinese and English versions of Waves , a collection of his medium-length novels and short stories. In 2006 he was invited by the Department of Translation to teach a summer course and organize a poetry reading. His relationship with the University was reconnected in 2008 when he became Professor of Humanities at CUHK. Although Bei Dao is affiliated with the Centre for East Asian Studies, the scope of his teaching is interdepartmental. He teaches a bilingual poetry workshop as well as some other writing courses. The poet tries to expand the world vision of Hong Kong students and enhance their writing competence through translation and reading exercises. In his opinion, writing is made up of ‘witchcraft’ and ‘craftsmanship’. ‘Witchcraft is inborn. It is the mysterious power that lets you summon wind and fire with language. Craftsmanship is something that can be acquired through comprehension and hard work. Without “witchcraft”, hard work ends in vain. Without “craftsmanship”, there is no form and, with time, the mysterious power of “witchcraft” vanishes.’ In addition to teaching, Bei Dao is active in organizing international literary events together with his colleagues. Having been away from China for 20 years, Bei Dao has accustomed himself to the philosophy ‘home is everywhere when it is nowhere’. Nevertheless, he says, ‘I find parallels between myself and Hong Kong in terms of identity—this city feels like a drifter and the self-identity of Hong Kong people is ambiguous. In this sense, I may have found another hometown.’