As Hong Kong topographical poetry is often considered a representation of the hectic aspects of an urban lifestyle, readers usually appreciate the poems through a preconceived image of Hong Kong, that of the city. In contrast to the common approach that regards the city as a reflection of ideologies and conflicts, this study takes topographical poetry as the lived experiences of poets, in order to probe into a direct and personal realm of human and place relationships. Hence, theories in the field of human geography, which focuses on the concept of space and place, are applied to a large extent. As a whole, this thesis argues that a place comes into being only when it is “lived” and endowed with a poet’s experiences, values and emotions.

Through an in-depth study of topographic...[ Read more ]

As Hong Kong topographical poetry is often considered a representation of the hectic aspects of an urban lifestyle, readers usually appreciate the poems through a preconceived image of Hong Kong, that of the city. In contrast to the common approach that regards the city as a reflection of ideologies and conflicts, this study takes topographical poetry as the lived experiences of poets, in order to probe into a direct and personal realm of human and place relationships. Hence, theories in the field of human geography, which focuses on the concept of space and place, are applied to a large extent. As a whole, this thesis argues that a place comes into being only when it is “lived” and endowed with a poet’s experiences, values and emotions.

Through an in-depth study of topographical poems in three chapters, this thesis sketches the development of a “sense of place” among Hong Kong poets. The analysis of early twentieth-century topographical poetry in Chapter Two shows that the poets tended to keep a distance from the environment and hold a visitor’s perspective, and ideology and social criticism were prevalent. Chapter Three delineates the significant changes topographical poetry has gone through since the 1950s. The slackening of social criticism together with the rise of personal perspectives helps to shape a place vividly and in great detail. The close reading of poetry depicting rural areas in Chapter Four reveals the complex nature of the countryside―it is a source of melancholy in the course of development while it also provides spiritual nourishment for city dwellers. Through the analysis of sense of distance, change of perspective, inclusion of detail, and engagement of the human senses, this thesis figures out the way a solid and sensuous place has gradually emerged in Hong Kong topographical poetry.