Bulletin Autumn‧Winter 2002

recreate, to discover a nd to construct, on the basis of the recognition of their i n d i g e n o us culture. Prof. K i n g advocates that China and H o n g Ko ng integrate themselves w i t h the rest of the w o r l d t h r o u gh such a process, as he recognizes that globalization and indigenization should proceed hand in hand. E v en t h o u gh a dm i n i s t r a t i ve duties at the U n i v e r s i ty have become i n c r e a s i n g ly demanding, Prof. K i n g continues to p u b l i sh articles and give public talks of great academic importance. In the early 1970s, w h e n he first arrived i n H o ng Kong, he conducted research on small manufacturers. He t h en t u r n ed to broader issues on the economy and the government. I n 1975 he w r o te ‘The A dm i n i s t r a t i ve A b s o r p t i o n of P o l i t i cs i n H o n g K o n g ' , published i n Asian Survey of UC Berkeley by University of California Press. The article was an instant success and came to be v i ewed as a prototype for political analysis on the H o n g K o n g situation. It was also made essential r e a d i ng for officers i n the A d m i n i s t r a t i ve G r a de i n the H o n g K o n g Go v e r nme n t. ‘ A V o l u n t a r i st M o d e l of O r g a n i z a t i o n' w as published in The British Journal of Sociology i n 1977 a nd was q u i c k ly i n c o r p o r a t ed i n to a textbook on sociology published i n the United K i n g d om. Prof. King's occasional papers on t r a d i t i o n al Chinese issues such as renqing (favour), mianzi (face) and guanxi (relationship) are p a r t i c u l a r ly w e l l k n o wn a nd have been extensively quoted, mu ch to the advantage of the i n d i g e n i z a t i on of sociological studies i n China. The article on guanxi was first published i n DAEDALUS, the l e a r n ed j o u r n a l of The Ame r i c an A c a d emy of A r ts a nd Sciences, i n 1991. In 1994 it was republished by Stanford U n i v e r s i ty Press a nd attracted even w i d e r attention in the academic wo r l d. The Journal of Asian Studies is universally acknowledged for its unrelenting standards; its No v emb er 1993 issue (issue no. 4) consisted of five articles, of w h i c h one w a s a l o n g d i s c o u r se o n the thoughts of Ambrose King, wh i le another i n the same issue discussed critically his works. These are just instances of the h i gh regard i n w h i c h his v i ews and opinions are held i n the international arena. In 2002, Prof. K i ng was one o f the k e y n o te speakers at the c e n t e n a ry celebrations of the U n i v e r s i ty of N a n j i n g, at which he spoke on globalization, diversification a nd the construction of a n ew civilizational order for China, g i v i ng new insight into the social development of the country in the future. The idea of the u n i v e r s i ty is a n o t h er research interest of Prof. King. In 1975 he spent a year doing research at Cambridge. As he took up residence amidst the quads a nd cloisters, the ancient edifices of this time-honoured seat of learning inspired h i m to further reflection on the meaning of education, and the nature of the university. H is c o n t emp l a t i on on the subject t o ok on n ew d i me n s i o ns w h e n he became head of N e w Asia College u p on return to H o n g K o ng i n 1977. In this n ew capacity his understanding of the spirit of universities a nd the collegiate system deepened, a nd he observed that a university, as an i n s t i t u t i on dedicated to the creation, development a nd dissemination of learning, is not just a symbol of the time, but also a beacon showing directions. A c c o r d i ng to Prof. K i n g, a u n i v e r s i ty mu st h a v e i ts o w n s t e a d f a st c o n v i c t i o ns to ‘ i l l u m i n a te the w a y f or the c o mm u n i t y '. However, in the face of intensifying challenges posed by globalization, ‘not one university, in any nation or any city, may territorialize and declare itself supreme.' In Prof. King's opinion, the mission of The Chinese University w i l l be to seek the balance b e t w e en m a i n t a i n i ng institutional independence and optimizing its usefulness to the c o mm u n i t y; seeking a nd m a i n t a i n i ng t h is balance i n v o l v ed m a n y c h a l l e n g e s. S i n ce a c c e p t i ng t h e v i c e - chancellorship, Prof. K i ng has spoken on the directions that the University s h o u ld take i n its f u t u re d e v e l o pme n t: first, to establish a Faculty of L aw to meet the needs of the time; second, to return to a four-year undergraduate programme w i t h a richer and more balanced curriculum; and third, to study the desirability and feasibility of institutional integration as a means to enhance the position and influence of The Chinese University amidst competition i n higher education wo r l dw i d e. Furthermore, Prof. K i ng is fully convinced of the value of a broad-based general education as a means to enrich students' c u l t u r al life a nd help t h em develop their character and values. A n d, in a public lecture series at the centennial commemoration activities at Southeast University this year, Prof. K i n g a g a in p a id t r i b u te to humanistic education in the modern university. The University's 58th Congregation