“Poetic Justice, Literary Censorship, and Chinese Cultural Policy”
Michel Hockx, departing director of the Liu Institute for Asia and Asian Studies and professor of Chinese literature, will deliver the 2026 Justice and Asia Distinguished Lecture—a lecture series that he established in 2021 with the Justice and Asia faculty committee.
In his lecture, “Poetic Justice, Literary Censorship, and Chinese Cultural Policy,” Hockx will present portions of his new book, Literature and Censorship in Modern China, (Routledge, 2026). Arguing against the meme-like understanding of Chinese cultural policy that often pervades US media and political discourse, he will present detailed examples of several cases of literary censorship from the Mao era to the present day.
Susan Blum, professor of anthropology and Liu Institute faculty fellow, will introduce Hockx. Blum, who also serves on the Justice and Asia Committee, led the establishment of Notre Dame's Center for Asian Studies in 1996, the precursor to the Liu Institute.
Free and open to the public, the lecture will be followed by a reception. Literature and Censorship in Modern China will be available for purchase at the event.
Wednesday, March 18 @ 3:30 p.m.
Justice and Asia Lightning Talks
Faculty and students will present their Justice and Asia research findings in a fast-paced panel discussion moderated by Liu Institute faculty fellow Jessica McManus Warnell, Rex and Alice A. Martin Faculty Director of the Notre Dame Deloitte Center for Ethical Leadership and Managing Director of Research Strategy, Operations, and Engagement for the Human-centered Analytics Lab (HAL).
About the Speaker
Michel Hockx joined the University of Notre Dame in 2016 as the founding director of the Liu Institute for Asia and Asian Studies, one of nine international academic units at Notre Dame’s Keough School of Global Affairs.
In addition to his appointment at the Keough School, where he serves on the School’s Leadership Council, Hockx is a professor of Chinese literature in the Department of East Asian Languages and Cultures in the College of Arts & Letters.
As director, Hockx leads the Liu Institute in its mission to support education, research, and outreach about Asia and its diaspora through degree programs, funding initiatives, public events, and reciprocal engagement with partners in Asia.
Hockx’s research examines literary communities in modern China, their values, products, and practices, and their relationship with the state. His other areas of expertise include modern Chinese poetry, contemporary Chinese online literature, and PRC cultural policy. His latest book, Literature and Censorship in Modern China (Routledge, 2026), examines literary censorship in China from 1900 to the present.
He is the past president of the Midwest Conference of Asian Affairs and organized the 2024 conference at Notre Dame during his presidency.
At Notre Dame, Hockx teaches classes in modern Chinese literature, culture, and media, as well as seminars on censorship in China and around the world, and a general introduction to Asian Studies.
Before joining the University of Notre Dame, Hockx served as director of the China Institute at SOAS, University of London, where he oversaw a community of 50 China scholars in a dozen disciplinary departments.
A native of the Netherlands, he studied Chinese language and literature at Leiden University, where he earned his PhD in 1994, and at Liaoning and Peking universities in China.
About the Series
The Justice and Asia Distinguished Lecture, sponsored by the Liu Institute for Asia and Asian Studies in the Keough School of Global Affairs, invites top scholars who examine the theme of justice in relation to Asia and with awareness of Asian cultures and traditions. The series is part of the Liu Institute’s organizing theme of Justice and Asia that examines and supports thematic work from a range of perspectives, projects, disciplines, and collaborations.
Originally published at asia.nd.edu.