Into the World of Eileen Chang
CityU’s Department of Chinese and History and the then Chinese Civilisation Centre co-organised a series of events for secondary school students in March and April 2022, aiming to improve their Chinese creative writing and their appreciation of literature through reading and studying the work of renowned Chinese novelist Eileen CHANG
Repulse Bay is an important and recurrent setting in Chang’s novels, including Love in a Fallen City. Schools may organise outings for students to explore the southern part of Hong Kong Island, following in the footsteps of famous Chinese writers such as Xiao Hung and Chan Koon-chung.
Chang’s novella Huadiao was used as an example by Dr Yuen Man-leuk, a Hong Kong writer and secondary school teacher, to showcase a wide range of extended activities to inspire students’ creativity and writing skills.
As one of the most perceptive authors of Chinese contemporary literature, Eileen Chang’s fictional writings are best known for her acute observation of all walks of life and the rich tapestry of human relationships in Hong Kong and Shanghai in the 1940s and 50s. Although it has already been 27 years since Chang’s death, her works are still loved by readers of different generations, and provide evergreen inspiration for numerous screen adaptations, such as Ang LEE’s Lust, Caution and Ann HUI’s latest film Love After Love.
To give secondary school students multiple perspectives to understand Chang’s work and her writing style, CityU’s Department of Chinese and History (CAH) organised three events based on her literary works for secondary school students and teachers, to enhance students’ writing skills, and share relevant teaching techniques with other Chinese subject teachers.
Eileen Chang’s Literary Work in Film
Several of Chang’s novels have been made into plays and films in recent decades. The latest adaptation was Love After Love, a movie adapted from Chang’s Agarwood Incense: The First Censer, which was also award-winning director Ann Hui’s third adaptation of Chang’s work. The first event of the series, held on 5 March 2022, originally planned to show Love after Love to students on a large screen in the assembly hall of a secondary school. However, this had to be taken online due to the outbreak of the pandemic’s fifth wave. In spite of that, the event still attracted 256 participants from over 30 secondary schools. Secondary school teacher and juvenile fiction series writer YAN Pui-kei hosted the event and guided students to compare the text with the adaptation. Two teachers from local secondary schools were also invited to discuss Chang’s works in greater depth with students.
Mastering Techniques of Novel-writing
The characters in Chang’s works have well-defined personalities. The change of psychology in the protagonists was vividly captured using trivial moments involving the characters. The second event focused on analysing Chang’s storytelling techniques and guided secondary school students to enhance their creative writing skills by making reference to her works. CHAN Chi-kian, vice principal and Chinese Language panel head of a secondary school hosted the event while Dr MA Ka-fai, Hong Kong writer and Assistant Professor of CAH, was invited to guide the audience in their appreciation of Chang’s works. Selected lines from representative works such as The Golden Cangue, Love in a Fallen City and Half a Lifelong Romance were discussed and analysed. The event was well received by 326 participants from nearly 60 secondary schools.
Teaching Chang’s Works at Secondary Schools
The last event of the series was designed for frontline Chinese subject teachers. This time, Dr Ma Ka-fai took the role of host to lead a forum joined by five secondary school teachers who are also Hong Kong writers themselves. The speakers shared their experiences of designing learning activities for students based on Chang’s works. For example, one speaker, LEUNG She-kwan, shared an introduction to landscape writing by using the Repulse Bay setting in Chang’s novels Love in a Fallen City and Little Reunions. Other speakers also shared suggestions for interdisciplinary activities, including setting up a thematic mini book fair, exhibitions in the library, reading clubs, love poetry competitions and association with other media / genres (pop songs, movies, micro-novels, etc.) About 160 participants attended the event, mainly secondary school teachers.
To explore Chang’s literary world in different formats, arts and cultural performances were arranged after the forum discussion. The Hong Kong Tertiary Putonghua Recitation Society performed a recital of Chang’s works in Mandarin. Drama societies of three secondary schools and Master of Arts students of CAH performed excerpts of Chinese Opera adapted from Chang’s works. The performances showcased new interpretations of the works, bringing vitality and new meaning.
The series has built a platform for both secondary school students and teachers to exchange teaching and learning ideas around Chinese creative writing. By gathering frontline teachers, local writers and students together, it is expected that further practical information and relevant experiences on reading, creative writing and education can be shared in more effective ways.