ABSTRACT
In the last two chapters, we examined the nation in Hong Kong’s recent history: the complex processes through which a Hong Kong apart from the Chinese nation was formed (Chapter 2) and how in recent years Hong Kong has been grappling with being a part of and yet still different from China (Chapter 3): belonging to the nation, yet keeping the nation at arm’s length. Let us, in the following two chapters, examine how national identity has been instilled in Hong Kong people in recent past and present. Lie (2004: 236) has written that “the disciplinary power of the nation-state manifests itself in all media that shape individual consciousness throughout the lifecourse, from the nationalist curricula of schools to the mass media of movies and television.” In this chapter we examine the mass media and how their portrayals of China have been shifting over the past several decades, from a negative evocation of the mainland to a positive one. In the chapter to follow, we examine education into national identity in Hong Kong schools. These two chapters examine the predominant means through which national identity is being instilled into Hong Kong people in the recent past and present.
