Page 49 - SYU Prospectus

General Education

the present day. Exploring the cities from a historical and cultural perspective will certainly help
us understand their historical, social and cultural development.
The proposed course will take a historical approach to analysis of the three most
representative coastal cities of modern China: Hong Kong, Shanghai and Taipei. Starting in
the 19th century, the modernisation and Westernisation of these cities will be explored and
compared. Next, we will probe into the following: 1) how the concept of modernisation
influenced and motivated the development of modern Chinese history; 2) in colonial cities, how
traditional cultures and concepts integrated with the new culture; and 3) how real historical
materials, such as architecture, museum exhibition information, films, photos, etc., have crafted
and continue to craft the colonial collective memory and cultural legacy, and their influence on
today’s society.

GEA 203 The Wisdom of Ancient Chinese Architecture
1 Term; 3 Credits
An ancient Chinese building tells us various stories, including its culture, history,
philosophy, feng-shui, art, architecture structure and style. There are a variety of ancient
Chinese buildings which can be classified into five major categories: gorgeous imperial palace,
intimate traditional Chinese residence, natural landscape Chinese garden, religious altar and
temple, and ethnical style of regional dwelling. By introducing different types of buildings,
students can understand the geographical features and historical evolution of Chinese
architecture, as well as the similarities and differences between social life and ethnic customs
in different regions.
Students will experience the Chinese architectural culture through films, videos, and field
trips. Upon completion, students will be able to apply the knowledge and concepts of Chinese
architecture to appreciate historical architectures for preserving the Chinese heritage and,
furthermore, work towards a balance and harmony urban living environment. Through field trips
to Ping Shan heritage trail and Chi Lin Nunnery in Hong Kong, students can experience
Chinese architecture as an essential part of Hong Kong’s local cultural heritage and realize
that the local vernacular environment is a harmonious and orderly living environment.

GEA 204 Hong Kong Kung-fu Novels, Films and Chinese Culture
1 Term; 3 Credits
Kung-fu novels and films have marshalled an impressive popularity in Hong Kong for
many decades. Throughout its history, this genre, unique in Hong Kong style, has been
punctuated by its different stages of development in terms of the aesthetics of human action,
and its success in attuning to the taste of readers and viewers for entertainment purposes.
This notwithstanding, many of the texts in this genre encompass an active encounter with the
Chinese yin-yang starting from I-Ching and Daoism itself. By going into the repertoire of an
embodied aesthetics of action through the technicity of martial art, students will be introduced
to the terrains of interdisciplinary studies in which “natural technology”, body capacity and its
“moving-in” with metallic tools, and the visuality of film-form, all merged together. Emphasis will
be placed on how cinematic apparatuses can work wonders in dramatizing an assemblage of

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