Why Cultural Studies through the Arts?
My interview with The University of Hong Kong
The Saturday Brunch: a figurative flat white or fizzy to start your weekend
In the above photo, you can make out several buildings I lived in during my eight years in Hong Kong as well as several that I studied in at The University of Hong Kong. I discovered a rich and dynamic environment in the department of Comparative Literature, where I first earned an MA in Literary and Cultural Studies (MALCS) followed by a PhD. Hong Kong will always be a home to me and a big part of that is the journey I went through at HKU.
The MALCS courses made a huge difference in the way I understood ways I could form connections internationally in the arts in an interdisciplinary fashion. Among my classmates were other teachers, musicians, lawyers, filmmakers, radio producers, activists, and more. Some of them remain very close friends.
The HKU department is unique and unlike other comparative literature departments in the way it has also embraced new textualities and fresh ways of understanding the world through the arts. They further have MOOC programs that you can access from anywhere.
I was so pleased and honored when the current HKU MALCS team, led by Dr. Winnie Yee, asked me to discuss the value of this degree and my current work. Thank you! The interview was published through their social media - Instagram and Facebook - in October. Below is the full transcript.
HKU MALCS: What prompted you to apply to MALCS? And furthermore, what was your experience at MALCS as a student? What is your academic research interest?
Kate: I applied to MALCS because I had always loved bringing ideas together through different types of texts and deepening understanding through critical theory; I was also interested in doing a PhD in comparative literature. Instead of simply a foundation for the further degree, I found that the MALCS opened up new ways of thinking through an interdisciplinary nature. Although I had degrees in literature and art, I had never studied film and was blown away by the way the department helped us investigate film in a multifaceted way. This element as well as urban studies and post-structural theory became the groundwork for my doctoral thesis. The MALCS also helped me connect and become friends with all types of creative people in Hong Kong: musicians, journalists, lawyers, artists, and other teachers.
What did you teach? Why were you interested in teaching?
I was teaching English and Theory of Knowledge (epistemology and applied ethics) at an international school during the MALCS and then became a TA and guest lecturer with your department during my PhD. I love helping students find their passions and their voice. I believe that everyone can write and also believe that we can all enjoy and find meaning in reading texts. IB English has become a sort of comparative literature, filled with ‘world literature’, multimedia texts, film, and even critical theory. After my degree, I returned as a school leader and curriculum developer to make the classroom experience richer through what I had learned. I also published books for teachers that further developed this enrichment. I had previously thought about an academic career, but returned to secondary schools in part to bring these ideas to students as well as to have time to devote to fiction writing, which I had discovered a love for during a ‘summer break’ from research.
How did the idea for Matterhorn come about? Why did you choose the online blog style to write the Matterhorn? How did the themes come about?
Due to several circumstances, I decided it was a good time to try out being a writer full time. I have a couple of book projects I’m working on, including a Vienna-based psychological thriller, but I’m still drawn to cultural studies through the arts. I thought I could do something unique to bring different texts into dialogue to create meaning whilst making theory and research more accessible for a wider audience. One could reduce it to a project of internationalism and intertextuality. It’s similar to the way I would go about planning my classroom curriculum through a conceptual framework. Except here, it becomes even more free. I’m expanding to a podcast and likely workshops and have already collaborated with some amazing people (like filmmaker and MALCS alum Gina Wong). I’m building a personal brand as a writer through ideas that I love, but the most important piece for me is connecting with my readers.
In this Substack newsletter, I’m interested in developing a specific audience. The platform allows you to build through a business model that other journalists and authors have found success in. I wanted something that could be somewhat interactive and allow for multimedia, but also have a fairly simple interface where I could write longer pieces. Although I love social media, I want this to be a place of pause from the busy world online.
What advice will you give to future MALCS students?
Be open to where this degree can take you. Try to avoid a fixed plan, because the ideas and people you will encounter can lead you somewhere new. Also, stay connected with your classmates and professors, or even guest speakers. In addition to great friendships, I’m collaborating with many of them now.
How valuable have your degrees been? In what ways do you find interdisciplinary learning enriching? What are some of the struggles when trying to go back to school while working or later in life?
Many thanks to Jonathan and Winnie for this conversation.
Your imagery is gorgeous, but your prose, as always, I'm finding out, steals the show.
I'm interested in building a very specific audience, too. I love this part, "Although I love social media, I want this to be a place of pause from the busy world online."
#AudioIssues was born of a similar want. I wanted a musical (specifically lyrical) ad-free respite from traditional pop culture and media experiences...that still embraces, utilizes, understands both in a more interactive/multimedia-enabled way. You seem to be doing that in your own way—and I dig it 🤓
I have traveled much of the country...but Japan and China (and HK) are big on the lists. I am jealous of your passport stamps and your talents.
Great work. Can't wait for the next. I hope I am part of that specific audience—I definitely think that I am.
🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥
Sounds like a great course. When I did my MA at the RCA I hasn’t studied for a number of years. The experience was like someone had opened up the top of my head and blown air through it. So good. From then on I was hooked and there was no question in my mind that I would go on to do a PhD.