Competing public discourses in transitional Hong Kong

This paper describes two competing discourses currently at work in the public domain in Hong Kong during the period leading up to the change of sovereignty in 1997. The two discourses are labelled Utilitarian and Confucianist. The Utilitarian discourse is characteristic of those who support greater democracy and autonomy for Hong Kong, while the Confucianist discourse is employed by representatives of China and the pro-China camp in Hong Kong. The Utilitarian discourse promotes egalitarian values and may be confrontational. The Confucianist discourse is more hierarchical and consensus-oriented in nature. The two discourses are illustrated by means of brief descriptions of a set of discursive events reported in the press and by four texts: a television news item, a television interview, and two newspaper articles.