今期《方圓》專題方向本來自較抽象的文化想像，不料到組稿、編排和製作階段，香港已完全陷入嚴峻的疫情狀況，每天上千的確診數字，政府的嚴刑苛政，在在顯示抗疫已超出了它本該有的範圍，簡言之，疫情愈來愈不只與公眾保健有關，而是愈來愈跟生命政治、意識形態管治以至訊息戰扣連。

尼采很喜歡講「正午」，那是超人（他的理想人格）降臨的光景。而用正午代表盛極一時，更是東西文學的共同想像。假如文明的發展維度以一天來類比，正午恰是黃金時段，不過日既到中天，也意味將走向黃昏。盛極而衰，最好的狀態埋藏著衰敗的種子。

The concept of ‘midday’ plays a significant role in Nietzsche’s philosophy, indicating his belief in the ultimate goal of humanity, the ‘Übermensch [superman]’. In both Eastern and Western literary imagination, midday often represents heyday. If the development of human civilization is to be compared to different phases of the day, the peak of it corresponds to midday and inevitably implies the fall of dusk. By coincidence, the publication of this issue was finished during the fifth wave of COVID19 in Hong Kong, signifying the unexpected deterioration. Contributing authors include Longtin, Pak Sheung Chuen and Lam Ching.