Class Syllabus: Modern China
Fall 2010
Bob Jones, Instructor

Wherever we look these days, news about China is in the newspapers and magazines, on the internet and TV. When we go shopping at Target or Walmart, it’s hard to avoid the “Made in China” label. How did the most populous nation in the world—and not long ago one of the poorest—get to where it is today? In this class, we’ll look at the recent history of China, its response to the West, and its subsequent journey from weak imperial state, through two revolutions and political chaos to the powerhouse of state-sponsored capitalism and global trade that it is today. In the class, we take a more human-sized approach to this transformation, and look at modern China though a number of different resources: the words of its rulers, reformers and revolutionaries; the works of art and literature; the critical eyes of historians, politicians and commentators; and the active internet world of China NOW! Class material will be based on assigned readings, films (documentaries and feature films), discussions

Required textbooks:

Jonathan C. Spence. The Search for Modern China. 2nd ed. (Paperback). W.W. Norton, 1999.

Pei-kai Cheng & Michael Lestz with Jonathan Spence (hereafter Cheng & Lestz). The Search for Modern China: A Documentary Collection. (Paperback). W.W. Norton, 1999.

Jonathan Spence. Mao Zedong: A Life (A Penguin Life). Penguin Books. 1999. (Paperback).

Liang Heng and Judith Shapiro. Son of the Revolution. (Paperback). Vintage Books. 1983 or 1984.

Additional Readings (handouts) from:

Chen Jo-hsi. “Chairman Mao is a rotten egg”. In The Execution of Mayor Yin and Other Stories from the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution. Indiana University Press. 1978.

Robert E. Gamer, ed. Understanding Contemporary China. 3rd Edition. Lynne Reinner Publishers. 2008.

Suzanne Ogden, ed. Global Studies: China. 12th edition. McGraw-Hill/Contemporary Learning Series. 2008.

Various online, magazine and newspaper articles, and documentary and feature films.

Learning Outcomes:
Students who successfully take this course will acquire a knowledge of recent Chinese history from the 17th century to the present, and gain an understanding of the great upheavals and changes that China has gone through during the 20th century. Students will also acquire a knowledge of China today and the challenges it faces, globally, politically, and culturally.

Grading:
Research paper30%
Presentation30%
Book review/project20%
Participation20%

Course Requirements and Assessment:
1. Write one 10-page research paper on one aspect of Modern China (approved by the instructor), properly formatted and cited, with full, annotated bibliography. Ratio of print sources to internet sources (book, journal article, newspaper, etc.) is 2:1 (e.g., twoprint sources for each internet source). Minimum ten sources. 30% of grade. (Research paper rubric to follow.)

2. One 30-minute team oral presentation to be given to the class at the end of the semester. A PowerPoint supported presentation is highly recommended. If course has large enrollment, teams of two students will present. Teams of two students will select a topic (with instructor’s approval). 30% of grade.

3a. One five-page review of a book (history, memoir, biography, etc.) on modern China, properly formatted and cited (20% of grade), OR

3b. Create a poster similar in size, themes, images and scope to a Cultural Revolution poster. (20% of grade), OR

3c. Participation in the Cultural Revolution Poster Project at Crane House (20% of grade)

4. Participation: Discussion and input on the daily readings and contemporary topics. 20% of grade.

Weekly Syllabus

Week 1: The Founding of the Manchu Qing Dynasty
Introduction to the course. Mapping exercise. Fall of the Ming and Founding of the Qing.Three strong emperorsKangxi (r. 1662-1722), Yongzheng (r. 1722-1735) and Qianlong (r. 1735-1799). Reading: Spence, Chapters 2-4; Cheng & Lestz, 2.1, 2.5, 3.3, 3.5, 4.1, 4.3.

Week 2. The Coming of the West
The Reign of Qianlong. The history of East-West contact: Silk Road, Pax Mongolica. The beginnings of 16thcentury European maritime contacts. The Industrial Revolution and free trade. Reading: Spence. Chapters 5-6; Cheng & Lestz, 5.1, 5.2, 5.4, 5.5, 6.1, 6.2, 6.3, 6.4, 6.5.

Week 3. Threats from the West
The MacCartney Mission and the pressure for trade. The Opium Wars and the Treaty of Nanjing. Treaty ports and the forced opening of China to trade and missionaries. Reading: Spence, Chapter 7; Cheng & Lestz, 7.1-7.5.

Week 4. The beginning of the end: Qing internal weaknesses
Rebellions; the Christian influence and the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. Reading: Spence, Chapter 8; Cheng & Lestz, 8.4, 8.5, 8.6.

Week 5. Attempts at Reform
Adaption of Western ideas. The First Sino-Japanese War. The Hundred Days Reform. The Boxer Rebellion and the Western response.Research paper topic due. Reading: Spence, Chapter 9; Cheng & Lestz, 9.4, 9.6, 9.7, 9.8,

Week 6. Fall of the Empire
Sun Yatsen and the revolutionary movement. The October 11 Revolution. The Guomingdang and warlordism. Reading: Spence, Chapters 10-11; Lu Xun, “The True Story of Ah Q” (handout); Cheng & Lestz, 10.1, 10.5, 10.6, 11.3, 11.4, 11.5.

Week 7. New Culture and the May 4th Movements
Repudiation of traditional government and culture. The Versailles Treaty and the May 4th protests of 1919. Political, social and literary innovations of the May 4th Movement.Reading: Spence, Chapters 12 and Chapter 13 to page 308. Cheng & Lestz, 12.3, 12.4, 13.1, 13.2.

Week 8. The Chinese Communists, 1921-1937
The founding of the CCP. The GMD-CCP alliance and the Northern Expedition. Chiang Kai-shek. Betrayal and survival. Mao Zedong and the Long March to Yan’an.Reading: Spence, Chapter 13, pages 308-313, Chapters 14-16; Begin Jonathan Spence’s Mao Zedong: A Life, Chapters 1-4; Cheng & Lestz, 13.3, 13.4, 13.6., 14.3-14.5, 14.6-14.8, 15.3-15.5, 16.2-16.4. 16.6-16.7.

Week 9. The Anti-Japanese War and Revolution
Japanese invasion and occupation. Japanese defeat. Civil war, the Communist victory and the Korean conflict. Reading: Spence, Chapters 17-18; Mao Zedong: A Life, Chapters 5-9; Cheng & Lestz, 17.4-17.5, 17.7, 18.1, 18.3, 18.4-18.5, 18.6.

Week 10. Communist Victory and China under Mao
Consolidation of communist administration. Economic reforms. The Hundred Flowers Movement and the Great Leap Forward. Reading: Spence, Chapters 19-21;Mao Zedong: A Life, Chapters 10-12. Cheng & Lestz, 19.2, 20, 20.2, 20.3, 20.4, 20.5, 21.1-21.3.

Week 11. The Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution
Factions and infighting. Ideological revisionism. Reading: Spence, Chapter 22; Liang Heng, Son the Revolution; Cheng & Lestz, 22.1, 22.2, 22.3-22.5, 22.6.

Week 12. The Aftermath of the Cultural Revolution
The “Gang of Four”. Deng Xiaoping’s reforms.“Capitalism with Socialist Characteristics”. Tian’anmen protests and crackdown.Social and economic reconstruction. Reading: Spence, Chapters 23-24; Cheng & Lestz, 23.1-23.2; 23.3, 24.1, 24.2.

Week 13. Economic Miracle, Political Repression
China in the world economy. Successes and failures. “Develop the West”. Alleviation of poverty for China’s millions. Book review or poster due. Reading: Spence, Chapters 25-26; Cheng & Lestz, 25.2, 25.3, 25.7-25.9, 26.1-26.2, 26.4, 26.5.

Week 14. China Today.
How do the Chinese people fare today under the present political structure? How free or repressive is Chinese society? What are the problems and challenges that face them today? What are the policies that affect the nation and the people domestically and internationally? Readings: Spence, Chapter 27; handouts. Cheng & Lestz, 27.1, 27.2.

Week 15. The Chinese Century?
State capitalism vs. free market capitalism. China’s challenges in the world market economy. Reading:Gamer, pp. 130-152; 226-232 (handouts), Ogden, pp. 163-168 (handout). Oral presentations begin.

Week 16. Presentations.
Oral presentations due this week. Research paper due.

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