Course Description

[Lectures and tutorials of this course will be delivered online.]

This course explores China’s quest for modernity since the 19th century, contextualized in comparison to the development of her neighbors in East Asia. Besides examining the various forces that prompted the modernization process in East Asia, students will scrutinize the various factors and processes involved. For example: How did interaction with people and things from other regions of the world affect political and cultural identities in China and other East Asian societies, and how did East Asia countries like China transform from being predominantly agricultural civilizations to having the diverse and dynamic economies we witness today? This course also questions whether modernization is mainly about economic development and the construction of a sustainable state structure or should it encompass broader advances in ideology and the adoption of values and norms like the protection of particular rights for individuals and groups. Students will also consider big challenges connecting the past, present, and future such as what are the positive and negative consequences of modernization that affect the natural environment and human relations. These issues will be examined thematically and comparatively by scrutinizing political and social institutions such as the family, marriage, education and social mobility, and other topics. By the end of the course, students will be able to apply the knowledge gained to analyze and understand current and future phenomena in contemporary China and East Asia.

Course Learning Outcomes

On completing the course, students will be able to:

1. Describe and explain the history of modernization of China within the East Asia context and challenge pre-conceived assumptions held about the modernization of China and Asia from previous historical studies.
2. Demonstrate understanding that the history of a region and country (in this case China) can be subjected to a variety of sharply contrasting views and interpretations.
3. Apply the knowledge gained from the course to analyze and understand contemporary China and East Asia.
4. Demonstrate a nuanced comparative understanding of China’s political, economic and cultural changes and use it to draw and study trends developing in the region.
5. Analyze the differences and similarities between China and her neighbours, notably Japan and Korea in their approaches towards modernity and development.

Offer Semester and Day of Teaching

First semester (Wed)