午夜剧场

This book records how 14 individuals from different backgrounds experienced the protests and political turmoil in Hong Kong since 2019. The author repeatedly questioned these 14 people, asking them to describe in detail the emotions they felt regarding the Hong Kong protests. Furthermore, the book touches deeply on each contributor's upbringing and social standing, allowing readers to trace how their thoughts were formed in Hong Kong, a place inhabited by people with diverse backgrounds.

Hong Kong, which attracts attention as a flashpoint in US-China relations, is easily discussed using "large subjects" such as "President Xi Jinping" or "President Trump." What actually happened in Hong Kong, what the local people thought, and the life stories that formed their backgrounds are rarely told; that is precisely why I planned this book to talk about the Hong Kong protests through "small subjects." The large-scale protests that occurred throughout Hong Kong—which sometimes turned radical—and the violent clashes with the police there had a major impact on people's daily lives, making it impossible to remain unrelated to the demonstrations. Society became deeply divided over support or opposition to the protests, and every social space in Hong Kong became politicized. This book depicts how a wide variety of relationships—schools, churches, romance, sign language classes, and a cappella groups—became politicized.

Not limited to Hong Kong, various social divisions and polarizations are occurring worldwide, and through editing this book, the author realized how "large subjects" create them. For example, in Hong Kong, protest supporters are categorized as yellow and government supporters as blue, but even among those labeled yellow or blue, a variety of thoughts should inherently exist. However, color-coding divides society into two and ignores the diversity within each color. "Small subjects" lead to the dismantling of such color-coding.

SFC, where I spent my undergraduate years, deals with various fields, and all laboratories share a common emphasis on fieldwork. I realized the importance of carefully picking up words from the field during my undergraduate days, and this becomes even more important in an era overflowing with discourse based on "large subjects." I hope this book reaches not only those interested in Hong Kong but also those interested in narratives told through such "small subjects."

Daichi Ishii (Editor)

Gendaijinbunsha

432 pages, 4,070 yen (tax included)

*Affiliations and job titles are as of the time of publication.