Harmony and War

Confucian Culture and Chinese Power Politics

AvYuan-kang Wang

Inbunden, Engelska, 2010

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Beskrivning

Confucianism has shaped a certain perception of Chinese security strategy, symbolized by the defensive, nonaggressive Great Wall. Many believe China is antimilitary and reluctant to use force against its enemies. It practices pacifism and refrains from expanding its boundaries, even when nationally strong. In a path-breaking study traversing six centuries of Chinese history, Yuan-kang Wang resoundingly discredits this notion, recasting China as a practitioner of realpolitik and a ruthless purveyor of expansive grand strategies. Leaders of the Song Dynasty (960-1279) and Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) prized military force and shrewdly assessed the capabilities of China's adversaries. They adopted defensive strategies when their country was weak and pursued expansive goals, such as territorial acquisition, enemy destruction, and total military victory, when their country was strong. Despite the dominance of an antimilitarist Confucian culture, warfare was not uncommon in the bulk of Chinese history.Grounding his research in primary Chinese sources, Wang outlines a politics of power that are crucial to understanding China's strategies today, especially its policy of "peaceful development," which, he argues, the nation has adopted mainly because of its military, economic, and technological weakness in relation to the United States.

Produktinformation

Utgivningsdatum:2010-12-15
Mått:152 x 229 x 27 mm
Vikt:670 g
Format:Inbunden
Språk:Engelska
Serie:Contemporary Asia in the World
Antal sidor:328
Förlag:Columbia University Press
ISBN:9780231151405

Utforska kategorier

Asiens historia inom Historia och arkeologi

Mer om författaren

Yuan-kang Wang is an assistant professor in the Department of Sociology and the School of Public Affairs and Administration at Western Michigan University. He holds a Ph.D. in political science from the University of Chicago and has received fellowships from Harvard University's Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs and the Brookings Institution's Center for Northeast Asian Policy Studies.

Recensioner i media

a necessary read for those concerned with the issue of cultural versus strategic realism and Chinese strategic culture...highly recommended. Choice Wang's book provides an accessible, historically well-informed and methodologicallywell-constructed account of an important phenomenon of Chinese history. -- Aleksandra Kubat China Quarterly ...a must-read for those who are interested in Chinese power politics and strategic culture. -- Julia Dinh T.H.L. Asian Politics and Policy Yuan-kang Wang's Harmony and War is the most important and well-conceived application of structural realist theory to Chinese foreign policy (past and present) to date. -- Gregory J. Moore Journal of Chinese Political Science

Innehållsförteckning

List of Illustrations List of Tables Preface 1. Confucian Strategic Culture and the Puzzle 2. Culture and Strategic Choice 3. The Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127) 4. The Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279) 5. The Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) 6. The Ming Tribute System 7. Chinese Power Politics in the Age of U.S. Unipolarity Notes Glossary: Chinese Terms Bibliography Index