“New Asia College Cultural Talks” is jointly organized by New Asia College and the New Asia College Alumni Association, co-organized by New Asia Middle School. There are two to three talks in each academic year. The second talk will be held on 18 January 2025. It is our honor to invite Prof. CHING May Bo, Associate Dean (CLASS), College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences, Head (CAH) & Professor, Department of Chinese and History, City University of Hong Kong, as our speaker.


Details are as follows:
Topic: When a Canton servant met a British Supercargo: China and the World in the Eighteenth Century
Speaker: Prof. CHING May Bo (Associate Dean (CLASS), College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences, Head (CAH) & Professor, Department of Chinese and History, City University of Hong Kong)
Moderator: Prof. CHAN Sun On (Head, New Asia College, CUHK, Associate Vice-President (Education), CUHK and Professor and Associate Director, School of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, CUHK)
Date: 18 January 2025 (Saturday)
Time: 4:00pm
Venue: Lecture Theatre, New Asia Middle School (through the school entrance at Hop Yat Road), 6 Farm Road, Tokwawan, Kowloon, Hong Kong
Deadline: 15 January, 2025 (Wed)


The on-site talk is limited to 30 attendees, allocated on a first-come, first-served basis, with priority given to online registration records.
Online Application: https://cloud.itsc.cuhk.edu.hk/webform/view.php?id=13701055


Abstract:
In 1774, a Chinese young man named Whang at Tong (alias Whang Tong) travelled to England and spent almost seven years there.  Whang was hired as a servant by John Bradby Blake (1745-1773), a British East India Company Resident Supercargo, when the latter was trading in Canton in the late 1760s and 1770s. After Blake’s death, it is most likely Whang Tong who brought his possessions, including notes on Chinese natural history and botanical drawings, to London. How did Whang Tong interact with foreigners in Canton and England? In what way did such transcultural encounters reveal the understudied facets of the history of China and the world in the 18th Century?


All secondary school students attending the talk will receive a “Certificate of Attendance,” issued by New Asia College, Chinese University of Hong Kong, on the day of the talk. Students are required to present the valid identification (e.g. student handbook or student ID) for verification after the talk.


The talk will be conducted in Cantonese.
All are welcome, free Admission.
Participants are welcome to attend in person/ online via Zoom.


Enquiries: New Asia College Office (Tel.: 3943-7609)
Email: nac@cuhk.edu.hk