On 31 October, in a captivating fusion of Eastern wisdom and global literary treasures, the University of Nottingham Ningbo China (UNNC) hosted "Timeless Classics, Contemporary Voices" event as the fifth FoSE liberal arts workshop on campus. The event created a profound dialogue between ancient Chinese classics and world literature, drawing over 600 students from more than 20 countries and regions, with nearly 500,000 viewers online.
The evening featured a remarkable convergence of texts: the rustic sincerity of China's Book of Songs met the magical realism of One Hundred Years of Solitude, while the philosophical depth of the Analects blended with the narrative of Barbara. This intentional curation highlighted both the diversity and universality of human expression.
As a Sino-foreign university, we are uniquely positioned to build bridges between cultures. As a Sino-foreign university, we are uniquely positioned to build bridges between cultures,
" said Professor John Zhou, Dean of the Faculty of Science and Engineering.
The production broke conventional staging by transforming the platform into an immersive "literary field" through massive projections – creating a "gigantic parchment" where figures from Confucius to Tagore, Su Shi to Li Qingzhao seemed to step off the page and into conversation with the audience.
International students responded with particular enthusiasm. "Presenting Chinese and foreign classics on the same stage is wonderfully surprising, and it helped me appreciate the beauty of Chinese characters and their musicality." shared Opeyemi, a Nigerian student.
For many STEM students, the event represented more than cultural exchange. "It's like a cultural salon that lets us directly experience different cultures through poetry," said Wang Ziyu, a first-year Engineering student.
The FoSE Liberal Arts Workshop series is designed to enhance students' aesthetic appreciation and spark inspiration, reflecting UNNC's commitment to fostering well-rounded development and enriching the extracurricular experience. By integrating rational thinking with humanistic sensibility, the Faculty demonstrates how science and art are not parallel lines, but intertwined spirals that drive innovation forward.
Published on 03 November 2025