Asian history Books

Book SynopsisIn the 1980s, as China transitioned to the post-Mao era, a state-sponsored oral history project led to the publication of local, regional, and national histories. They took the form of written and transcribed personal testimonies of events that preceded the turmoil of both the Cultural Revolution and, in many cases, the Communist victory in 1949. Known as wenshi ziliao, these publications represent an intense process of historical memory production that has received little scholarly attention. Hitherto unexamined archival materials and oral histories reveal unresolved tensions in post-Cultural Revolution reconciliation and mobilization, informing negotiations between local elites and the state, and between Party and non-Party organizations. Taking the northeast RussiaManchuria borderlands as a case study, Martin T. Fromm examines the creation of post-Mao identities, political mobilization, and knowledge production in China.Trade Review'In this prodigiously well-researched book, Martin T. Fromm traces the process of constructing an always incomplete ideological consensus in 1980s China, showing how post-Mao political discourse was the continuously negotiated product of a flexible, mediated, and in many ways collaborative effort. This is a fundamental contribution to our understanding of the Deng era.' Fabio Lanza, University of Arizona'This book provides in-depth and sophisticated analyzes of the mobilization, production, publication, and circulation of a series of published memoirs on northeastern China. Its innovative use of sources leads to a narrative that is both informative and inspiring. It will appeal to students and scholars interested in the People's Republic of China, borderland, or oral histories, as well as collective memory, identity and identification, and the legacy of colonization.' Shao Dan, University of Illinois, Urbana-ChampaignTable of ContentsIntroduction; 1. Reconfiguring cultural production in the post-Mao transition; 2. Borderland ambiguities in narratives of modernization and liberation; 3. Relocating the nation outside the nation: forging a borderland-centered nationalist discourse; 4. The 'historical science' of Wenshi Ziliao; 5. Affective community and historical rehabilitation: 'widely making friends' to re-secure political loyalty; 6. Mobilizing a 'patriotic united front'; 7. Local, regional, and national dynamics of Wenshi Ziliao production; Conclusion.

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Book SynopsisThe Arthaśāstra is the foundational text of Indic political thought. By analyzing its early history, Mark McClish overturns prevailing beliefs that ancient India was governed by religion and shows that this text originally espoused a political philosophy characterized by empiricism and pragmatism, ignoring the sacred mandate of dharma altogether.Table of Contents1. Introduction; 2. Arthaśāstra historiography; 3. The resegmentation of the Arthaśāstra; 4. Citation and attribution; 5. The deep structure of the text; 6. The history of the Arthaśāstra; 7. The politics of the Daṇḍanīti; 8. Varṇadharma in the Arthaśāstra; 9. Statecraft, law, and religion in ancient India; Appendices.

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Book SynopsisAn innovative examination of heritage politics in Japan, showing how castles have been used to re-invent and recapture competing versions of the pre-imperial past and project possibilities for Japan''s future. Oleg Benesch and Ran Zwigenberg argue that Japan''s modern transformations can be traced through its castles. They examine how castle preservation and reconstruction campaigns served as symbolic ways to assert particular views of the past and were crucial in the making of an idealized premodern history. Castles have been used to craft identities, to create and erase memories, and to symbolically join tradition and modernity. Until 1945, they served as physical and symbolic links between the modern military and the nation''s premodern martial heritage. After 1945, castles were cleansed of military elements and transformed into public cultural spaces that celebrated both modernity and the pre-imperial past. What were once signs of military power have become symbols of Japan''s ideaTrade Review'An exciting history of Japan from the Tokugawa period to the present, as seen through the lens of its castles. The book explores their shifting meaning within the context of Japan's drive to modernize, its militarism, construction of empire, wartime devastation, postwar recovery, and search for meaning in a postmodern world.' Constantine N. Vaporis, University of Maryland, Baltimore County'In describing the life of Japanese castles, Benesch and Zwigenberg have taken an inherently interesting topic left unexplored by academics and given us a model of how to launch a new field of study with grace and aplomb. There is much here to satisfy students, scholars, and the interested public.' Michael Wert, Marquette University, Wisconsin'Oleg Benesch and Ran Zwigenberg's Japan's Castles is a timely addition to the growing body of literature on historical memory and heritage in modern Japan … this groundbreaking work will change the ways readers will look at castles during future visits … this is a pioneering work that persuasively demonstrates the strengths of memory studies based on a methodological combination of field studies, archival research, and the analysis of a broad range of newspapers and periodicals. The increasing accessibility of such sources allows the contemporary historian to present a much more nuanced analysis than was possible in the past, and Benesch and Zwigenberg deserve the highest praise for having achieved this goal and for weaving the abundant information gathered together to produce a coherent, richly documented, and extremely stimulating volume.' Sven Saaler, The Journal of Asian Studies'In this well-researched book, Benesch (Univ. of York) and Zwigenberg (Pennsylvania State Univ.) offer an in-depth historical look into the vicissitudes of Japanese castles in modern times … this is a satisfying read!' Q. E. Wang, Choice'For the general reader, this is a book written, despite its clear academic rigor, in an eminently accessible style that will greatly enhance a historical or touristic interest in Japan's castles. For the academic reader, it is full of valuable arguments and information pertinent not only to the niche field of castle studies, but to many areas of Japanese studies and/or modern history. The authors have done a particularly good job of demonstrating the relevance of castles to many of the mainstream issues in post-1850s Japan, making their book highly recommended for inclusion on any undergraduate or postgraduate reading list relating to modern Japanese history. Indeed, Japan's Castles indicates the strong potential of castle studies to form an integral part of our understanding of the social, cultural, economic, and political development of modern Japan.' Philip Seaton, Monumenta Nipponica'Benesch and Zwigenberg draw on an impressive array of sources, ranging from official documents to local periodicals. The authors also include several fascinating visual sources that will help readers understand some of the more unorthodox trends in modern castle architecture; and many of the images are simply delightful in their own right. Overall, this is a sophisticated but accessible treatment of the eponymous subject, and is thus essential reading for specialists in modern Japanese history. Scholars interested in the intersections between urban history, politics and architectural preservation will also find much of interest. Benesch and Zwigenberg have made an invaluable contribution to the field, which will undoubtedly inspire some exciting scholarship in the coming years.' D. Colin Jaundrill, The English Historical Review'Benesch and Zwigenberg argue that from the start of the Meiji period to present time, castles of various extraction- whether original to the Sengoku period, restored, reconstructed, or newly invented - have continuously occupied a central place in the politics, militarization, economy, religion, and cultural identity of cities across the main islands of Japan. As physical structures and symbolic features, castles carry the baggage of premodern heritage while also igniting new aspirations for national unity and regional revitalization. The book steers us toward the realization that the majority of castles standing today reveal much less about Japanese bushido, traditional architecture, and esprit de corps than we would like to believe.' Alice Y. Tseng, The Journal of Japanese Studies'With Japan's Castles, Oleg Benesch and Ran Zwigenberg have provided a uniquely valuable addition to English language scholarship on their subject, one that has much to offer to anyone with an interest in Japan studies and cultural heritage. This volume, within the context of the authors' wider work on the subject, will remain the definitive work on the heritage politics of castles in modern Japan. The authors ably explore how castles have been used to present the country's feudal past and put to practical use in both the militarised imperial state and the demilitarised postwar period, thus presenting Japan's castles as a mirror for its changing self-conception as a modern nation state … This work is certainly a necessary addition to any library on modern Japan, and I recommend it unreservedly.' Jon Morris, Social Science Japan JournalTable of ContentsIntroduction; Part I. From Feudalism to Empire: 1. Castles and the transition to the imperial state; 2. The discovery of castles, 1877–1912; 3. Castles, civil society, and the paradoxes of 'Taisho militarism'; 4. Castles in war and peace: celebrating modernity, empire, and war; Part II. From Feudalism to the Edge of Space: 5. Castles in war and peace II: Kokura, Kanazawa, and the rehabilitation of the nation; 6. 'Fukkō': Hiroshima Castle rises from the ashes; 7. Escape from the center: castles and the search for local identity; 8. Japan's new castle builders: recapturing tradition and culture; Conclusions.

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Book SynopsisThe suppression of piracy and maritime raiding was a keystone in the colonisation of Southeast Asia. This comparative study in colonial history explores how piracy was defined, contested and used to resist or justify colonial expansion, particularly from c.1850 to c.1920. This title is also available as Open Access on Cambridge Core.Trade Review'In Pirates of Empires, Stefan Eklöf Amirell provides a detailed, often vivid presentation of the European crackdown on piracy in Southeast Asia. A refreshingly complex take on both the undeniable brutality of piracy for indigenous populations and the cynical exploitation of this scourge to advance colonial rule.' Michael Miller, University of Miami'This is a complex and engaging book; it crosses a good portion of Southeast Asia, and looks at the deep history of piracy in the region from a number of inter-locking angles. Solidly researched and provocative, it helps us to look at the phenomenon of piracy in new and fascinating ways.' Eric Tagliacozzo, Cornell University, New YorkTable of ContentsIntroduction; 1. Piracy in global and Southeast Asian history; 2. The Sulu Sea; 3. The Strait of Malacca; 4. Indochina; Conclusion; Epilogue: piracy and the end of empire.

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Book SynopsisBased on a completely reconstructed archive of Persian, Hindi and Marathi documents, Nandini Chatterjee provides a unique micro-history of a family of landlords in Malwa, central India, who flourished in the region from at least the sixteenth until the twentieth century. By exploring their daily interactions with imperial elites as well as villagers and marauders, Chatterjee offers a new history from below of the Mughal Empire, far from the glittering courts of the emperors and nobles, but still dramatic and filled with colourful personalities. From this perspective, we see war, violence, betrayal, enterprise, romance and disappointment, but we also see a quest for law, justice, rights and righteousness. A rare story of Islamic law in a predominantly non-Muslim society, this is also an exploration of the peripheral regions of the Maratha empire and a neglected princely state under British colonial rule. This title is also available as Open Access.Trade Review'This book is an important work that enriches our understanding of family, empire and estate in South Asia. The analysis moves away from state policy and image-building to the micro-processes that actually reproduce state power. It achieves this through the mastery of difficult sources presented in a wide comparative frame.' Sumit Guha, University of Texas, Austin'In tracking a single family's legal documents over three centuries, Nandini Chatterjee has written an extraordinary book, upturning our understanding of how Mughal law worked and how it was experienced by its subjects. It will be revelatory for anyone interested in Islamic, South Asian, or Mughal history.' Samira Sheikh, Vanderbilt University'… it will be a valuable addition to the historiography of the Mughal Empire.' P. P. Barua, ChoiceTable of ContentsIntroduction; 1. Malwa: land of many empires; 2. Zamindars: lords of the marches; 3. Contractors: engaging the state; 4. Transactions: recording deals; 5. Disputes: judges and courts; 6. Invaders: marathas and the British; 7. Identity: professionals or warlords?; Conclusion. Fragments to archives: a methodological manifesto; Appendix. A catalogue of the P Das archive; Glossary.

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Book SynopsisThe history of the Indonesian Revolution has been dominated by depictions of grassroots fighters and elite politicians who thought of it as a nationalistic or class-based war. In this major new study, Kevin W. Fogg rethinks the Indonesian Revolution (194549) as an Islamic struggle, in which pious Muslims, who made up almost half the population, fought and organized in religious ways. Muslims fighting on the ground were convinced by their leaders'' proclamations that they were fighting for a holy cause. In the political sphere, however, national leaders failed to write Islam into Indonesia''s founding documents - but did create revolutionary precedents that continue to impact the country to this day. This study of a war of decolonization in the world''s most populous Muslim country points to the ways in which Islam has functioned as a revolutionary ideology in the modern era.Trade Review'Indonesia's Islamic Revolution offers a fine analysis of the distinct place of the Muslim elites and grassroot activists in the Indonesia's revolution - an alternative to the conventional secular and leftist narratives, and not only sheds a fresh light on how and why religious aspiration hardly dies in contemporary Indonesian politics but also significantly contributes to a comparative study of religion and revolution in the modern societies.' Muhamad Ali, University of California, Riverside'Bringing his subject alive with beautifully illuminating vignettes and acute observations, Kevin W. Fogg presents a powerful new interpretation of Indonesia's revolution that is also a pleasure to read. Indonesia's Islamic Revolution is a major work of social and political history that casts new light on the Islamic origins of modern Indonesia.' Edward Aspinall, Australian National University'Indonesia's Islamic Revolution is a good place to start, with an interesting bibliography that combines Western and Indonesian publications, and a narrative made more intriguing by excerpts from oral interviews.' Chiara Formichi, South East Asia ResearchTable of ContentsIntroduction; 1. Islam in Indonesia before the Revolution; 1.1 Islam in Indonesia at the turn of the twentieth century; 1.2 Divisions within the Muslim community; 1.3 Trends in the early twentieth century; 1.4 Japanese occupation; Part I. Islam in Indonesia's War of Independence: 2. Islamic calls to action; 2.1 The reasons for the revolutionary struggle; 2.2 Early Fatwas; 2.3 A flood of Fatwas; 2.4 A manifesto for the Islamic revolution: M. Arsjad Thalib Lubis's Toentoenan Perang Sabil; 2.5 Attacks on Islam as calls for action; 2.6 Conclusion; 3. Ulama, Islamic organizations, and Islamic militias; 3.1 Ulama as revolutionary leaders; 3.2 The mobilization of Islamic organizations; 3.3 Sabilillah and Hizbullah; 3.4 Islamic militias in battle; 3.5 Conclusion; 4. Magic, amulets and trances; 4.1 Tradition of Islamic magic; 4.2 Prayers and incantations; 4.3 Amulets and spells; 4.4 Martial arts and trances; 4.5 Consequences of Islamic magic: fearlessness and high casualties; 4.6 Conclusions; 5. Social revolution; 5.1 Meaning of social revolution; 5.2 Out with the old; 5.3 In with the new (and Islamic); 5.4 Social revolution in Aceh: the Cumbok War; 5.5 Madiun affair as competing social revolutions; 5.6 Staying power of social revolution; 5.7 Conclusion; 6. Darul Islam; 6.1 Sequence of events leading Kartosuwirjo into rebellion; 6.2 The Darul Islam movement within the Islamic spectrum; 6.3 Exceptional factor: Kartosuwirjo; 6.4 Conclusion; Part II. Islam in Indonesia's Political Revolution: 7. The Jakarta Charter controversy; 7.1 Creation of the investigatory board; 7.2 The creation of Pancasila and the Jakarta Charter; 7.3 Removal of the Jakarta charter from the constitution; 7.4 Implications of the elimination of the Jakarta Charter; 8. The creation of Masjumi; 8.1 The evolving state in 1945; 8.2 Founding an Islamic political party: Masjumi; 8.3 Extraordinary members; 8.4 Masjumi leadership in 1945; 8.5 Conclusions; 9. The ministry of religion; 9.1 Colonial precedents; 9.2 Establishing a ministry; 9.3 The ministry of religion in action; 9.4 Conclusions: importance of the ministry; 10. Rise of Islamic socialists; 10.1 Background of the Islamic socialists; 10.2 Rise in government and the party; 10.3 Islamic socialists and the Masjumi platform; 10.4 Conclusions; 11. Regional Islamic parties; 11.1 Masjumi's geographic expansion; 11.2 Persatuan Tarbiyah Islamiyah (Perti); 11.3 Regional political Islam facing federalism; 11.4 Conclusion; 12. The exit of PSII and the first fracture of Masjumi; 12.1 Standard narrative of PSII's exit: central power play; 12.2 PSII's own narrative: regional initiative; 12.3 Weighing personal versus regional interests in PSII's rebirth; 12.4 Conclusions: the implications of PSII's exit for Islamic politics; 13. Islamic diplomacy; 13.1 Grassroots Islamic diplomacy; 13.2 Success with the Arab League; 13.3 Diplomatic milestones; 13.4 Conclusions; Conclusion.

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Book SynopsisOn the eve of the early modern age, Ming emperors ruled around one-quarter of the globe''s population, the majority of the world''s largest urban centers, the biggest standing army on the planet, and the day''s most affluent economy. Far from being isolated, the Ming court was the greatest center of political patronage in East Eurasia, likely the world. Although the Ming throne might trumpet its superiority, it understood its need for allegiance from ruling elites in neighbouring regions. In this major new study, David M. Robinson explores Ming emperors'' relations with the single most important category of Eurasian nobles: descendants of Ghengis Khan and their Mongol supporters. Exploring the international dimensions of Chinese rule, this revisionist but accessible account shows that even rulers such as the Ming emperor needed allies and were willing to pay for them.Trade Review'Far from rejecting all things foreign, the early Ming emperors - each in his own way - continued both relations with Mongol successor regimes near and far, and the splendid and personal Mongol-style rule and diplomacy. Robinson sheds new light on the Ming court, the Yongle emperor, and the Tu Mu incident.' Sarah Schneewind, University of California, San Diego'David Robinson brilliantly explores the entanglements of dynastic succession in the aftermath of the demise of the Mongol Yuan dynasty. The book provides expert guidance and utterly novel insights as it unravels the intricacies of court and international politics. Drastically refashioning the common image of a dynasty that resurrected Chinese civilization after an age of foreign rule and barbarism, Robinson shows the early Ming emperors as savvy politicians who valued and used the Mongols, their erstwhile rulers, as allies and subjects. The striking originality of Robinson's interpretation of early Ming emperorship, and the exacting depth of its research, make this book a true gem of historical scholarship.' Nicola Di Cosmo, Institute for Advanced Study, New Jersey'David Robinson's fascinating new book locates the Ming dynasty firmly in its full Eurasian context. Focusing on the early Ming relations with the Mongols - their subjects, rivals and allies - he illuminates both the early Ming emperors - their policies, personalities and concepts of rulership - and the post-Chinggisid world within which they operated. Meticulously researched, and stressing the Ming's Inner Asian identity, the book offers a new interpretation of China's place in the early modern world. A must for anyone interested in Late Imperial China, the legacy of the Mongol Empire, and early modern history.' Michal Biran, Hebrew University of Jerusalem'… the book is a significant addition to the study of Chinese history as well as Mongolian history, and indeed Central Eurasian and World History … it is accessible to non-specialists … this study serves as a useful model for similar studies on other empires in world history.' Timothy May, Journal of Chinese Military History'Robinson's new book breaks away from the old Ming-Mongol binaries prevalent in historical sources and historiography. this book makes significant scholarly contributions by telling a new story about Ming rulership and by opening up new possibilities in research on Eurasian connectivity and comparative empires.' Ying Zhang, China and AsiaTable of ContentsIntroduction, 1. Zhu Di's march to power in a Chinggisid world; 2. Search for control; 3. Mongol nobles at the Ming court; 4. Tumu crisis in a Eurasion context: struggle for the Chinggisid mantle; 5. Tumu crisis (II) allies and commensurability; Conclusion.

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Book SynopsisThe first two decades of the twenty-first century have witnessed a rise of populism and decline of public confidence in many of the formal institutions of democracy. This crisis of democracy has stimulated searches for alternative ways of understanding and enacting politics. Against this background, Tessa Morris-Suzuki explores the long history of informal everyday political action in the Japanese context. Despite its seemingly inflexible and monolithic formal political system, Japan has been the site of many fascinating small-scale experiments in ''informal life politics'': grassroots do-it-yourself actions which seek not to lobby governments for change, but to change reality directly, from the bottom up. She explores this neglected history by examining an interlinked series of informal life politics experiments extending from the 1910s to the present day.Trade Review'Tessa Morris-Suzuki incisively explains why democracy is so difficult. For two centuries, many Japanese individuals have produced an impressive array of visionary, cosmopolitan, compassionate, and useful institutions that improve the lives of their neighbors - both body and soul - at the local level - surely the beginning of the answer, she argues.' Laura Hein, Harold H. and Virginia Anderson Professor of History, Northwestern University'From White Birch Teachers, Peasant Art and Free University, to craft and health cooperatives, Morris-Suzuki powerfully exposes the Japanese multitude's transnational past from the ground up and in transwar perspective. This history of symbiotic everyday networks that countered capitalist modernity reveals a new past that could change and challenge old future imaginations of the Anthropocene, democracy and climate change.' Sho Konishi, University of Oxford'Morris-Suzuki reminds us that the transnational history of Japan involves more than the circulation of ideas and practices at the level of nation-states. In this engaging account of translocal connections, we witness the formation of 'new villages' and other communities that championed autonomous politics outside the state and in dialogue with like-minded groups around the world.' Sheldon Garon, Princeton University'… those who are interested in rural activism in Japan will find a fascinating and rewarding read that is elegantly written and presents an important and new perspective on Japan and its history of grassroots activism.' David Chiavacci, Journal of Japanese Studies'Japan's Living Politics is likely to be of greatest interest to Japan scholars and students, and it should be widely adopted in Japan studies courses. That said, it should also be of interest to sociologists and anthropologists interested in community activism and communal living. I hope that comparative democracy scholars also take notice because Morris-Suzuki's methodology reads, to this reviewer at least, as both more authentic and more informative than much of the large-n quantitative research that has become a focus of that subfield.' Mary Alice Haddad, Monumenta NipponicaTable of Contents1. Japan and the crisis of democracy; 2. Living politics: Japan and the world; 3. The white birch and the Earth: giving life to the self in interwar Japan and beyond; 4. Rethinking the village; 5. Peasant art, free drawing and the free university; 6. The body politic: Saku Hospital and the Japanese cooperative movement; 7. Seeds of democracy: rural spaces of autonomy in postwar Japan; 8. Development from within: environment, region and autonomous action from the 1980's onwards; 9. Disaster and aftermath: informal life politics after 2011; Conclusion. Towards another democracy.

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Book SynopsisThis book examines the evolution of fiscal capacity in the context of colonial state formation and the changing world order between 1850 and 1960. Until the early nineteenth century, European colonial control over Asia and Africa was largely confined to coastal and island settlements, which functioned as little more than trading posts. The officials running these settlements had neither the resources nor the need to develop new fiscal instruments. With the expansion of imperialism, the costs of maintaining colonies rose. Home governments, reluctant to place the financial burden of imperial expansion on metropolitan taxpayers, pressed colonial governments to become fiscally self-supporting. A team of leading historians provides a comparative overview of how colonial states set up their administrative systems and how these regimes involved local people and elites. They shed new light on the political economy of colonial state formation and the institutional legacies they left behind at independence.Table of Contents1. Fiscal capacity and the Colonial State. Lessons from a comparative perspective Ewout Frankema and Anne Booth; 2. Towards a modern fiscal state in Southeast Asia, c. 1900–60 Anne Booth; 3. Why was British India a limited state? Tirthankar Roy; 4. Indigenous and colonial institutions in the fiscal development of French Indochina Montserrat López Jerez; 5. Fiscal development in Taiwan, Korea and Manchuria: was Japanese colonialism different? Anne Booth and Kent Deng; 6. From coast to hinterland. Fiscal capacity building in British and French West Africa, c. 1880–1960 Ewout Frankema and Marlous van Waijenburg; 7. New colonies, old tools. Building fiscal systems in East and Central Africa Leigh Gardner; 8. Local conditions and metropolitan visions: fiscal policies and practices in Portuguese Africa, c.1850–1970 Kleoniki Alexopoulou; 9. How mineral discoveries shaped the fiscal system of South Africa Abel Gwaindepi and Krige Siebrits.

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Book SynopsisIndia is generally regarded as a civilization with a set of intrinsic attributes that emerged in the age of the Vedas or, better still, in the Harappan times. In recent decades, historical studies have moved away from rigid perspectives of singularity in origin and expansion; the emphasis now is on pluralities and long-term processes spanning centuries and millennia. There is also an influential school of thought which rejects antiquity claims such as these and holds that India is a construct of the colonial and nationalist imagination. In his radical reinterpretation of India's past, Manu V. Devadevan moves away from these reifying assessments to examine the evolution of institutions, ideas and identities that are characterized, typically, as Indian. In lieu of endorsing their Indianness, he traces their emergence to specific conditions that developed in India between 600 and 1200 CE, a period which historians now call the 'early medieval'.Table of ContentsList of tables; List of maps and figures; Acknowledgements; Introduction; Part I. Institutions: 1. State formation and its structural foundations; 2. From the cult of chivalry to the cult of personality: the seventh-century transformation in Pallava statecraft; 3. Changes in land relations and the changing fortunes of the Cēra state; 4. Temple and territory in the Puri Jagannātha imaginaire; Part II. Ideas: 5. Svayamòbuddha's predilections: the epistemologies of time and knowledge; 6. Bhāravi and the creation of a literary paradigm; 7. Knowing and being: the semantic universe of the Kūdòiyātòtòamò theatre; 8. The invention of zero and its intellectual legacy; Part III. Identities: 9. The evolution of vernacular languages: a case study of Kannada; 10. Religious identities in times of Indumaulòi's grief; 11. Caste, gender and the landed patriarchy; 12. The making of territorial self consciousness (with particular reference to Kaliṅga); Bibliography; Index.

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Book SynopsisThe sent-down youth movement, a Maoist project that relocated urban youth to remote rural areas for ''re-education'', is often viewed as a defining feature of China''s Cultural Revolution and emblematic of the intense suffering and hardship of the period. Drawing on rich archival research focused on Shanghai''s youth in village settlements in remote regions, this history of the movement pays particular attention to how it was informed by and affected the critical issue of urban-rural relations in the People''s Republic of China. It highlights divisions, as well as connections, created by the movement, particularly the conflicts and collaborations between urban and rural officials. Instead of chronicling a story of victims of a monolithic state, Honig and Zhao show how participants in the movement - the sent-down youth, their parents, and local government officials - disregarded, circumvented, and manipulated state policy, ultimately undermining a decade-long Maoist project.Trade Review'A wonderfully nuanced and insightful study of China's monumental Cultural Revolution campaign that sent millions of urban youths to the remote countryside. Based on a wide array of rich archival and interview sources, this is a first-rate work of scholarship that is also eminently readable. Highly recommended for academic and general audiences alike.' Elizabeth J. Perry, Harvard University, Massachusetts'Across the Great Divide changes our understanding of the sent-down movement and Mao's China. Focusing on Shanghai youth sent to villages, the book documents not only their experiences, but also the connections and conflicts between them and villagers and between rural and urban officials and parents. The result is a remarkable new history.' Guobin Yang, University of Pennsylvania'This well-researched volume by Honig (Univ. of California, Santa Cruz) and Zhao (Univ. of California, Santa Barbara) seeks to probe how China's sent-down youth movement of 1968-80 was informed by and affected relations between state and society, and between city and countryside.' S. K. Ma, Choice'Across the Great Divide will be of interest to not only scholars of modern China but also to a wider audience interested in understanding the dynamics characterizing one of the greatest social experiments of the twentieth century. Individual chapters will serve well as assigned readings for undergraduate courses, offering local perspectives on what the sent-down youth movement actually meant in practice.' Justin Wu, Pacific AffairsTable of ContentsIntroduction; 1. Farewell to the Huangpu River; 2. Not all quiet on the rural front; 3. The unplanned economy; 4. Inappropriate intimacies; 5. Urban outposts in rural China; 6. Things fall apart; 7. Epilogue.

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Book SynopsisIn this major new study, Margherita Zanasi argues that basic notions of a free market economy emerged in China a century and half earlier than in Europe. In response to the commercial revolutions of the late 1500s, Chinese intellectuals and officials called for the end of state intervention in the market, recognizing its power to self-regulate. They also noted the elasticity of domestic demand and production, arguing in favour of ending long-standing rules against luxury consumption, an idea that emerged in Europe in the late seventeenth and early nineteenth centuries. Zanasi challenges Eurocentric theories of economic modernization as well as the assumption that European Enlightenment thought was unique in its ability to produce innovative economic ideas. She instead establishes a direct connection between observations of local economic conditions and the formulation of new theories, revealing the unexpected flexibility of the Confucian tradition and its accommodation of seemingly unoTrade Review'Economic Thought in Modern China is an ambitious exploration of the evolution of indigenous Chinese economic thought, rooted in a critical re-evaluation the foundations of imperial political economy and extending into the ideas that shaped Chinese attempts at economic improvement in the twentieth century. Zanasi mines a wide range of sources rarely used by economic historians, and reads them with an iconoclastic sensibility and a thorough grounding in the social and political contexts in which they were written.' Madeleine Zelin, Columbia University'Bold and combative, this study of the history of Chinese political economy in general and ideas about luxury consumption in particular will be of interest to historians of economic thought who are curious about the intellectual pathways followed outside Europe and open to the possibility that it was for good reason that these pathways were often anything but parallel with their European counterparts.' Helen Dunstan, University of Sydney'Zanasi demonstrates that China in the early modern period possessed pro-market ideas and the belief that luxury consumption promotes economic development. Furthermore, her timely book offers the best explanation yet for why China in the past one hundred years turned to state intervention in the market to encourage thriftiness.' Wu jen-shu, Academia Sinica, Taipei'This fascinating title is suitable for students interested in political economy and economic thought … Highly recommended.' D. Li, ChoiceTable of ContentsIntroduction; 1. The political and intellectual framework: the Minsheng mandate and China's economy of scarcity; 2. Efficient markets and productive consumption (1500–1800); 3. Scarcity revisited: population growth, frugality, and self-strengthening (1800–1911); 4. Nation-building, strategic markets, and frugal modernity: the early decades of the Republic of China (1912–1930s); Conclusion.

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Book SynopsisRiots, strikes, and protests broke out in the streets of Shanghai and Bombay (renamed Mumbai in 1995), with impressive frequency during the twentieth century. Many of the landmark protests and social movements had close connections with the neighborhoods, workplaces, and civic space of each city. By the late twentieth century, as the political geography of each city changed rapidly with the commodification of urban land, so too did the patterns of political contention. Using a comparative historical lens, Frazier chronicles the political biographies of these two metropolises and leading centers of manufacturing and finance. Debates over ideology, citizenship, and political representation took material form through clashes over housing, jobs, police violence, public space, among much else, in the lived experience of urban residents. Frazier puts contemporary debates over informal housing, eviction of inner-city residents, scarcities of manufacturing jobs, and questions of unequal citizenship in an illuminating historical context.Trade Review'Frazier reveals the power of a closely-studied, empirically-based and controlled comparison of two of Asia's 'maximum' cities over the last century. It makes for a fascinating read and embodies the best in the burgeoning field of Sino-Indian studies.' Prasenjit Duara, Oscar L. Tang Family Professor of East Asian Studies, Duke University, North Carolina'This impressive book is a tour de force account of the convergences and divergences that underpin collective protest in two of the world's great megacities: Shanghai and Mumbai. The book views contentious politics in both port cities through a comparative lens that will make scholars working on either of the two cities see them in new ways.' Prashant Kidambi, Centre for Urban History, University of Leicester'This remarkable and groundbreaking book examines contemporary Indian and Chinese urban politics and protests through a historical lens and with a focus on twentieth-century Shanghai and Bombay. It is a milestone in the comparative study of southern urbanism and politics.' Fulong Wu, Bartlett Professor of Planning, University College London'... it is worth noting that inasmuch as its empirical richness is a hallmark of Frazier's fine book, it can also present a challenge.' Prerna Singh, Comparative PoliticsTable of ContentsIntroduction; 1. Political geographies and contentious ports; 2. Nationalism and urban social movements, 1919; 3. Containing contention through nationalist movements; 4. In search of the socialist-modernist metropolis; 5. The rebellions of 1966; 6. Relocation, de-industrialization, and the politics of compensation in Mumbai; 7. Relocation, de-industrialization, and the politics of compensation in Shanghai; Conclusion.

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Book SynopsisWhy are some slums in India's cities able to demand development from the state while others fail? Drawing on two years of fieldwork, Auerbach explains this uneven success of slum residents. This book is aimed at researchers and students in comparative politics, political economy, development studies, urban studies, and South Asian studies.Trade Review'Millions of people across the world live in urban slums. In this important book, Auerbach asks why some slum communities feature better living conditions than others. Based on rigorous, multi-method research and deep contextual knowledge, he traces how party workers broker access to public services and, against conventional wisdom, shows that more diverse communities have superior public goods provision precisely because they feature multiple, competitive party worker networks.' Melani Cammett, Clarence Dillon Professor of International Affairs, Harvard University, Massachusetts'Auerbach's book takes us to the forefront of contemporary urbanization, examining how slum dwellers in India secure basic services and infrastructure. Combining extensive qualitative fieldwork with survey data, he finds that slums with dense networks of party workers obtain more paved roads, drainage, and other crucial infrastructure. This stellar example of multi-method scholarship will help cement the 'urban turn' in comparative politics.' Alison E. Post, University of California, Berkeley'With this book, Auerbach emerges as a leader among scholars who look at the urban poor from the inside out. His painstaking ethnographic work and impressive original statistics persuade us that without looking at slums' internal politics, little can be predicted about service levels and other outcomes. Laying bare these patterns of local politics, and explaining how they matter, will remain Auerbach's abiding contributions to the study of the poor in cities.' Anirudh Krishna, Edgar T. Thompson Professor of Public Policy, Duke University, North Carolina'Demanding Development significantly advances the literature on democracy. Drawing on a wealth of ethnographic and survey data, Auerbach paints a picture of Indian slums that sets a new standard for depth and rigor. He lays waste to the widespread view of slums as passive communities manipulated by politicians. In a magisterial portrait of how slum politics actually work, Auerbach shows us how slum dwellers mobilize to make claims, making the powerful case that for all their diversity and desperation, slums can be arenas of solidarity and political organization. Demanding Development will fundamentally change the debate on the politics of the urban poor.' Patrick Heller, Lyn Crost Professor of Social Sciences, Brown University, Rhode Island'The real merit of the book lies in explaining differentiated responses from the slums, linked both to the forms and nature of political mobilization, and its impact on the quality of public service delivery … This multilayered book challenges us to rethink our approach about the nature of political competition, party organization, party leadership, ethnic politics, and the quality of public service delivery.' Adnan Farooqui, The Book Review'… the book is an interesting analysis of how the poorest of the poor use democracy to 'demand development' in India while living in a settlement which tends to be ignored in developing countries. It is extremely well-written and it contains interesting qualitative interviews that not only help explain the mechanism behind the results, but also bring the slums to life for the reader.' Dr Mahvish Shami, The London School of Economics and Political Science'Demanding Development is an impressive account of the local political institutions that enable slum residents to demand public goods. It is a compelling and convincing work, and should be considered essential reading for anyone interested in distributive politics, urban politics, political parties, clientelism, brokers, and community-driven development. Highly recommended.' Sarah J. Lockwood, Democratization'Demanding Development is a pathbreaking book … The extensive, immersive fieldwork provides a level of richness and complexity to political brokerage that is rare and very welcome in the study of distributive politics…The book will appeal to political scientists, urban planners and development studies audiences who are interested in better understanding the relationship between politics and public services in Global South cities.' Veronica Herrera, Urban Affairs Review'The book makes an important contribution to understanding the vibrancy and forms of citizen claim-making; how political parties embed themselves in the social life of citizens; and how these processes combine to produce differentiated access to public services in urban India.' Anindita Adhikari, Economic and Political Weekly'Demanding Development represents a nuanced and authoritative account of the mechanics of electoral mobilization and patronage on the ground in slum settlements, highlighting brokers as the lynchpin that connects these two forms of political activity.' Adnan Naseemullah, Commonwealth and Comparative Politics'Demanding Development is an impressive work drawing on both ethnographic research and a quantitative dataset. It helps one understand the complex process of engagement of slum dwellers in India to demand and avail public services through the channel of local party leaders…We highly recommend this book to the social science community studying comparative politics in South Asia in the context of slum settlements' Environment and Urbanization Asia'Auerbach's book is filled with remarkable insights that emerge from attentive questions … It is counterintuitive at times and thoroughly thought-provoking.' Chinmay Tumbe, Urbanisation'… Demanding Development provides a groundbreaking perspective on how citizens build responsive state institutions from the bottom up.' Journal of Development StudiesTable of Contents1. Puzzling disparities at the margins of the city; 2. Setting the stage: governance and political parties in Urban India; 3. How party worker networks impact local development; 4. India's slum leaders; 5. Views from the ground: narratives from eight squatter settlements; 6. Party workers and public goods provision: evidence from 111 settlements; 7. Why party worker networks spread unevenly across settlements.

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Book SynopsisIn this major new study, Mark Edward Lewis traces how the changing language of honor and shame helped to articulate and justify transformations in Chinese society between the Warring States and the end of the Han dynasty. Through careful examination of a wide variety of texts, he demonstrates how honor-shame discourse justified the actions of diverse and potentially rival groups. Over centuries, the formally recognized political order came to be intertwined with groups articulating alternative models of honor. These groups both participated in the existing order and, through their own visions of what was truly honourable, paved the way for subsequent political structures. Filling a major lacuna in the study of early China, Lewis presents ways in which the early Chinese empires can be fruitfully considered in comparative context and develops a more systematic understanding of the fundamental role of honor/shame in shaping states and societies.Trade Review'Lewis has produced yet another masterpiece. In this breathtakingly clear and powerful study, he dismantles the common trope of China as a shame culture, historicizing what it meant in ancient times to “lose face,” and showing how the honor-shame complex shaped social groups, the state, and even a non-state public domain that was immensely influential in the political and cultural realms.' Erica Fox Brindley, Pennsylvania State University'From an unexplored perspective, Honor and Shame brilliantly unfolds how different forms of power were conceived, constructed, and contested in early China. Its masterful study of essential characteristics of Chinese culture will bridge dialogues between past and present and between East and West.' Liang Cai, University of Notre Dame'This is a brilliant book. It highlights the importance of the concepts of honor and shame as major factors that shaped early China's political, social, and intellectual history. Professor Lewis's tour de force will benefit both the students of China's past and all those engaged in cross-cultural comparisons.' Yuri Pines, The Hebrew University of JerusalemTable of ContentsIntroduction; 1. Honor and shame of the king and the warrior; 2. Acquired honor in the warring states; 3. State-based honor in the warring states; 4. Honor of the imperial officials; 5. Honor in local society in the early empires; 6. Honor and shame of writers and partisans; Conclusion.

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Book SynopsisIn this compelling new study, Louise Edwards explores the lives of some of China''s most famous women warriors and wartime spies through history. Focusing on key figures including Hua Mulan,ZhengPingru and LiuHulan, this book examines the ways in which these extraordinary women have been commemorated through a range of cultural mediums including film, theatre, museums and textbooks. Whether perceived as heroes or anti-heroes, Edwards shows that both the popular and official presentation of these women and their accomplishments has evolved in line with China''s shifting political values and circumstances over the past one hundred years. Written in a lively and accessible style with illustrations throughout, this book sheds new light on the relationship between gender and militarisation and the ways that women have been exploited to glamorise war both historically in the past and in China today.Table of Contents1. Women warriors and wartime spies of China; 2. The archetypal woman warrior, Hua Mulan: militarising filial piety; 3. Qiu Jin: transitioning from traditional swordswoman to feminist warrior; 4. Xie Bingying opening public spaces to women – fighting patriarchy and fighting militarists; 5. Aisin Gioro Xianyu: 'Joan of Arc of the Orient' or 'Mata Hari of the East'?; 6. Guerrilla resistance leader, Zhao Yiman: warrior teacher and sacrificing CCP mother; 7. Negotiating sexual virtue: the glamorous honey-trap spy, Zheng Pingru; 8. Ding Ling and Zhenzhen: female chastity and good communist governance; 9. Mobilising and militarising rural China through the girl martyr, Liu Hulan; 10. Women warriors and wartime spies as tools for 'total militarisation': The Red Detachment of Women; Bibliography; Index.

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Book SynopsisViceroys tells the important story of the British aristocracy sent to govern India during the reigns of five British monarchs and the role it played in the shaping of the modern British identity.Trade ReviewA richly rewarding work of history * Military History *

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Book SynopsisBetween 1858 and 1947, twenty British men ruled millions of some of the most remarkable people of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.From the Indian Mutiny to the cruel religious partition of India and the newly formed and named Pakistan, the Viceroy had absolute power, more than the monarch who had sent him. Selected from that exclusive class of English, Scottish and Irish breeding, the aristocracy, the Viceroys were plumed, rode elephants, shot tigers. Even their wives stood when they entered the room. Nevertheless, many of them gave everything for India. The first Viceroy, Canning, exhausted by the Mutiny, buried his wife in Calcutta before he left the subcontinent to die shortly afterwards.The average Viceroy lasted five years and was granted an earldom but rarely a sense of triumph. Did these Viceroys behave as badly as twenty-first century moralists would have us believe? When the Raj was over, the legacy of Empire continued, as the new rulers slipped easilTrade ReviewA richly rewarding work of history * Military History *

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Book Synopsis At zero dark thirty on January 30, 1971, units of the U.S. Fifth Mechanized Division left their firebases along the DMZ heading west along Provincial Route 9. The mission, called Dewey Canyon II, was to reopen the road from Khe Sahn Air Base to the Laotian border, in support of a South Vietnamese invasion of Laos (doomed from the start) to cut off the Ho Chi Minh Trail. Alpha Company of U.S. 61st Infantry performed commendably in keeping Route 9 open, with just one casualty killed by friendly fire. They returned to Firebase Charlie-2 in April, exhausted but hopeful--the Fifth would be leaving Vietnam in July. They patrolled the western hills through May as rocket attacks fell each evening. On the 21st, a direct hit on a bunker killed 30 of the 63 men inside--18 were from Alpha Co. This is their story, as told to Specialist Lou Pepi by members of his unit.Table of Contents Table of Contents Dedication Acknowledgments Preface Introduction   The Universal Soldier—JC Summerlin   A Born Leader of Men—Robert Dean  1 The Fateful Day  2 Sergeant Toler and the Killer Team  3 December 12, 1970—Night Mission at Con Thien  4 Lam Son 719 Overview  5 Red Devil Road  6 Lam Son—The First Rotation  7 March 3, 1971  8 Frank Curry, March 15—The Army Called It Misadventure  9 March 19–25, 1971—Relieving the Cav 10 Other Memories of the Final Days of Lam Son 719 11 April 1971—Captain Robert Dean 12 May 20th—Alpha Company in the Field 13 May 21st—Alpha Company in the Field 14 May 21st—At Charlie 2 15 In Memoriam—The Names 16 The Combatants Who Contributed to This Book Afterword—Foxhole Humor, by Stephen Wheat Glossary Appendix 1—Battalion Communication Logs Appendix 2—Brigade Communication Logs Appendix 3—After Action Report Author's Service History Works Cited Index

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Book Synopsis"The book and its chapters have been updated in view of the new land acquisitin law and resettlement guidelines..." -- Back cover

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Book SynopsisA very first for Bangladesh, this edited book examines the complex issues of development-induced displacement and resettlement using case studies with good practice examples from a wide range of ongoing projects. The authors, who are largely practitioners in the field of resettlement studies, are well-known in the country and internationally for their expert knowledge. The book establishes a baseline for further research on resettlement and development in Bangladesh. It is rich in well-presented case studies replete with evidence-based strategies to help prevent impoverishment amongst those displaced by development projects. The chapters in this collection address emerging issues and approaches to resettlement and thus have enriched the literature in an era of rapid economic development and change. Thus, the book will remain as a valuable resource and reference or teaching aid in academic and development circles.

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Book SynopsisThe word khan is not a name, but a title. It means chieftain or king. It is a word used in various forms by the different tribes and nations that from time immemorial have inhabited Central Asia, and has been applied to a great number of potentates and rulers that have from time to time arisen among them. Genghis Khan was the greatest of these princes. He was, in fact, one of the most renowned conquerors whose exploits history records.

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Book SynopsisThis book is a firsthand account of three visits to the Japanese empire with sketches of Madeira, St. Helena, Cape of Good Hope, Mauritius, Ceylon, Singapore, China, and Loo-Choo by J.-¯W. Spalding while he was aboard the U.-¯S. Steam-Frigate Mississippi.Table of ContentsFor more information, please visit our website at:https://novapublishers.com/shop/the-japan-expedition-japan-and-around-the-world/

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Book SynopsisThe architecture of India Proper is treated in an exhaustive manner in this work. Its description might easily extended even beyond these limits, but without plans and more accurate architectural details, any such additions would practically contribute very little that was valuable to the information the work already contains.Table of ContentsList of Illustrations; Preface; Introduction; Section I - Buddhist Architecture; Section II - Jaina Architecture; Section III - Architecture In The Himalayas; Section IV - Dravidian Style; Section V - Chalukyan Style; Section VI - Northern Or Indo-Aryan Style; Section VII - Indian Saracenic Architecture; Section VIII - Further India; Section IX - China; Appendix; Index.

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Book SynopsisThe object of Hinduism and Buddhism: An Historical Sketch is to trace the history and development of religion in India and elsewhere with occasional remarks on its latest phases. This book is an attempt to give a sketch of Indian thought or Indian religion-for the two terms are nearly equivalent in extent-and of its history and influence in Asia.Table of ContentsPreface; Section 1: The Mahayana -- Main Features of the Mahayana; Bodhisattvas; The Buddhas of Mahayanism; Mahayanist Metaphysics; Mahayanist Scriptures; Chronology of the Mahayana; From Kanishka to Vasubandhu; Indian Buddhism as Seen by the Chinese Pilgrims; Decadence of Buddhism in India. Section II: Hinduism -- Śiva And Vishnu; Features of Hinduism: Ritual, Caste, Sect, Faith; The Evolution of Hinduism. Bhâgavatas And Pâśupatas; Śankara. Śivaism in Southern India. Kashmir. Llngâyats; Vishnuism in South India; Later Vishnuism in North India; Amalgamation of Hinduism And Islam. Kabir And the Sikhs; Śâktism; Hindu Philosophy; Index.

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Book SynopsisThe object of Hinduism and Buddhism: An Historical Sketch is to trace the history and development of religion in India and elsewhere with occasional remarks on its latest phases. This book is an attempt to give a sketch of Indian thought or Indian religion -- for the two terms are nearly equivalent in extent-and of its history and influence in Asia.Table of ContentsSection I: Buddhism Outside India -- Expansion of Indian Influence; Ceylon; Burma; Siam; Camboja; Champa; Java and the Malay Archipelago; Central Asia; China. Introductory; China (Continued). History; China (Continued). The Canon; China (Continued). Schools of Chinese Buddhism; China (Continued). Chinese Buddhism at the Present Day; Korea; Annam; Tibet: Introductory; Tibet (Continued): History; Tibet (Continued): The Canon; Tibet (Continued): Doctrines of Lamaism; Tibet (Continued): Sects; Japan. Section II: Mutual Influence of Eastern and Western Religions -- Influence of Christianity in India; Indian Influence in the Western World; Persian Influence in India; Mohammedanism in India; Index.

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Book SynopsisFloyd Sully, a Canadian collector fascinated by practical yet beautiful representations of China, laboured over 15 years to assemble this beautiful collection focused on maps, documentary paintings, and illustrated texts. It features works produced inside China and abroad that were created for both Chinese and Western viewers. This publication explores important dimensions of Chinese visual culture and offers a diverse and telling set of perspectives on the Chinese world as it underwent a process of profound transformation spanning five centuries of artistic production through to modern times.Trade Review“Dealing with a highly original topic, this catalog showcases original materials rarely seen in a library and museum setting: 16th to 18th century Chinese manuscripts, and hand-colored woodblock prints,” said Cherry Williams, chair of the RBMS Exhibition Awards committee and curator of manuscripts at Indiana University. “Its rich information content, with extensive, well-written notes composed by curator Walter Davis, has intellectual depth and constitutes a contribution to scholarship on the subject of early Chinese history and culture. In addition, the curators narrowed the choices well, resulting in a spectacular choice of items; each item is unusual, visually interesting and stunning in appearance.” -- Jury comments, 2014 Katharine Kyes Leab and Daniel J. Leab * “American Book Prices Current” Exhibition Awards *

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Book SynopsisThe Ukraine is one of the largest and most strategically important newly independent countries in the world. Ukraine''s history and culture extend back over thousands of years and form a tapestry which reveals much about mankind''s history. This book discusses issues of concern for the future.

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Book SynopsisThis outstanding book details the riveting and tireless efforts to regain freedom in Russia. There are many reasons both individually and together, for the fall of the Soviet Union including United States foreign policy, political implosion, impact of religious belief, and simply the overt decision to change systems by the Gorbachev regime. The Soviet Union can fairly have been called a monster state since it murdered its own people, tried to snuff out religion and relegated those it didn''t kill or exile to live lives of heavy toil with little chance of living normal existences. During the building and developing of the Soviet Union and its mass exterminations, there were many courageous fighters for its freedom, both inside and outside. This book traces the activities of the White Army, its leaders and their destinies. It also reveals many unknown facets of the Vlasov army and its leaders. The story is told through the eyes and life of Paul Butkoff, who lived through the Soviet Union''s existence and labored to do his part in keeping the flame of freedom aglow even during the gloomy days when liberals in the West jumped on the bandwagon of the Soviet Union.

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Book SynopsisExplores the important interconnections involving questions of race, ethnicity, gender, and sexuality on world screens by examining a range of films, videos, and digital works associated with global Chinese cultureTrade Review"Marchetti offers a sophisticated analysis of the thoroughgoing transformation of contemporary "Greater China" as mediated by an integrated international cinema system held in a curious interplay between state-controlled and 'free-market' institutions." Darrell Y. Hamamoto, University of California, Davis

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Book SynopsisShirin, the beloved wife of the Persian shah, Chosroes II (b. 628), pulled political strings behind the scenes and supported the Christian minority in Iran.

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Book SynopsisOf the many ballads, tales, and plays extolling filial piety (xiao)--the foundational virtue of imperial China--none was more popular in that era than the legend of Dong Yong and his heavenly helpmate, Weaving Maiden. Continually revised and embellished over a millennium, the tale's popularity remains, finding new expression in Chinese film and opera in the twentieth century.The five versions of the legend presented here, alongside a selection of related texts, illustrate changing perceptions of xiao from the tenth century through the first part of the twentieth in a variety of genres. An appendix traces the development of the related legend of Weaving Maiden and Buffalo Boy from myth to folktale.Wilt L. Idema's Introduction traces the evolution of the central legend and its significance in the history of Chinese popular culture. Annotations explaining terms and references that may be unfamiliar to Western readers, a glossary, and a comprehensive bibliography further enhance the value of this book for both scholars and students.Trade ReviewWilt L. Idema is Professor of Chinese Literature, Harvard University.

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Book SynopsisThe late-imperial legend of Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai, the Butterfly Lovers--a story as central to Chinese culture as Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet is to Western culture--also relates a tale of two lovers help apart by social strictures. To audiences of the many Chinese ballads, plays, and films based on the story, the tragic ending offers proof that equality and happiness can only be achieved in a China freed from the traditional family system.This volume offers translations of the earliest versions of the popular ballad along with later literary reinventions of the tale; a variety of related documents reveal the historical and cultural origins of the legend. In his Introduction, Wilt L. Idema provides essential contextual information and discusses how the story of the Butterfly Lovers fits into modern Chinese concepts of gender roles and sexual freedom.Trade ReviewIdema's scholarship . . . [and his] ability to translate popular texts into comparably idiomatic English are outstanding achievements. --Hugh R. Clark, Ursinus CollegeA judiciously chosen selection of the highlights of the famous Liang-Zhu story cycle with a particular focus on earlier and little-known redactions in a multiplicity of genres. Expertly translated with glosses on cultural items, this volume will prove a boon to the English reader with an interest in the riches of Chinese oral and vernacular culture. Scholars and students of Chinese literature and culture will value this volume for the insight it gives into the emergence and development of the story at key points in the tradition. Teachers of Chinese literature, history, and gender studies too will find much to draw inspiration from in the introduction, the translated stories and the background material presented in this book. --CHINOPERL PapersA significant contribution to our understanding of pre-modern vernacular Chinese literature and the society which it reflects. An informative and insightful study that both specialists and general readers interested in Chinese culture, thanks to accurate and felicitous translations and concise and edifying commentaries, will find a delight to read. --Richard John Lynn, University of Toronto, in The Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society

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Book Synopsis"Shen Fu's Six Records of a Life Adrift is the most intimate document at our disposal of private life in late imperial China. Graham Sanders now provides us with a new translation for the 21st century, which is not only well researched but also highly readable". --Wilt Idema, Harvard UniversityTrade ReviewThis delightful nineteenth-century narrative, which has charmed Chinese audiences for over a century, has finally found its match in this new translation by Graham Sanders. His rendering in English comes from a deep understanding of the language, style and artistic structure of the original, and is enriched by informative notes explaining the differences between Chinese and Western culture. What this unforgettable confessional prose has to show us about human nature is clearly expressed. --Milena Doleželová-Velingerová, University of TorontoShen Fu's subtle yet emotional account of his love-match with Chen Yun, their relations with his family, his pastimes with friends and courtesans, his travels far and near, his frustrations with work and his obsessions at play illustrate the life of a Qing lower gentryman in a patriarchal family, but at the same time reveal human complexities that require the nuancing of simplistic over-generalizations about class, gender, tradition, Confucian family values, and the like. This lively new translation--the first in nearly thirty years--clarifies certain passages, helpfully adds section breaks, and provides explanatory footnotes. Also included are a family tree, a chronology, and other useful reference materials. The result is an edition that will enhance discussions in a variety of courses, from Chinese and world history to gender and family history. --Sarah Schneewind, University of California at San Diego"Sanders's translation is the first to appear in almost thirty years, and it is the richest and most comprehensive of the three other English-language versions that are available. . . . Nearly every page in Sanders's translation has explanatory footnotes (including half of the first page), but more important, nearly every page also brings metaphors and imagery that will delight readers versed in the Western literary tradition. The book could be used in any number of courses, in addition to being a required reading for courses on imperial China. Six Records of a Life Adrift would be appropriate for gender studies courses, world literature, comparative literature, and creative writing. The brilliance of Shen Fu as a writer and Graham Sanders as a translator is nowhere more evident than in the scene describing Chen Yun's final moments. After alluding to her untimely demise several times, Shen Fu presents her passing in a beautiful passage of lachrymose prose. His grief is real. We experience his sadness." --China Review International

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Book SynopsisAvailable in one or two volumes, this accessible, yet rigorous, introduction to the political, social, and cultural history of China provides a balanced and thoughtful account of the development of Chinese civilization from its beginnings to the present day.Each volume includes ample illustrations, a full complement of maps, a chronological table, extensive notes, recommendations for further reading and an index.Volume 1: From Neolithic Cultures through the Great Qing Empire (10,000 BCE—1799). Volume 2: From the Great Qing Empire through the People's Republic of China (1644—2009).Trade ReviewA solid, clearly written and up-to-date account of China's dynastic history, taking note of recent research, and with attention to cultural developments and economic practice. An accessible read, even for first-comers to this highly complex subject; this is an excellent introduction to China that instructors will welcome and students will enjoy. --Michael Loewe, University Lecturer in Chinese Studies, University of Cambridge 1963-1990; Emeritus Fellow of Clare Hall.Tanner has written an excellent text on Chinese history which offers a fine balance between the traditional and the modern. He also charts a good balance between studies of the elite, government, philosophy and diplomacy and, on the other hand, analyses of ordinary people, economic institutions, social patterns, and folk religion. The book provides a comprehensive view of Chinese culture, including developments in literature and the arts. A generous selection of illustrations facilitates comprehension of and pleasure in the visual arts. Finally, Professor Tanner's consideration of Western contact with China and the attendant problems and gains is judicious and informative. --Morris Rossabi, Distinguished Professor of History, City University of New York . . . . Tanner writes attractively . . . . He tells many stories of villains and heroes, of tragedy and comedy, of high culture and coarse humour, of wealth and poverty, of feast and famine, of poignant suffering, all of which keep the reader's interest and indeed fascination. It is a heroic tale that he tells and he does this superbly, rejecting myths and misunderstandings that have beset Western views of a complex country. --G.R. Batho, The Historical Association Reviews

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Book SynopsisIncludes timelines, maps, suggested further readings, and an index.Trade ReviewThis compact narrative history of government institutions and their dialectical relation to society makes a perfect introduction to traditional China for political science, modern history, and comparative politics classes. The thesis, upheld by both specifics in lively prose and thought-provoking cross-period comparisons, is that unity, however valorized, always required hard work: military, political, and cultural creativity amidst ever-changing ethnic, class, and religious formations. Dardess also washes out old libels on non-Han, female, and eunuch power holders simply by recounting the facts. --S. Schneewind, University of California, San DiegoJohn Dardess has provided a concise yet rich description of the evolution of the governing institutions of imperial China through periods of unity and disunity from the late Han (150 CE) to the late Qing (1850) dynasties. His account of change and continuity in governance over a two-thousand-year span of China’s history is an excellent and accessible introduction to a remarkably durable political tradition that resonates even today in the workings of the modern Chinese state and contemporary state-society relations. --William Joseph, Wellesley College

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Book SynopsisIncludes timelines, maps, suggested further readings, and an index.Trade ReviewThis compact narrative history of government institutions and their dialectical relation to society makes a perfect introduction to traditional China for political science, modern history, and comparative politics classes. The thesis, upheld by both specifics in lively prose and thought-provoking cross-period comparisons, is that unity, however valorized, always required hard work: military, political, and cultural creativity amidst ever-changing ethnic, class, and religious formations. Dardess also washes out old libels on non-Han, female, and eunuch power holders simply by recounting the facts. --S. Schneewind, University of California, San DiegoJohn Dardess has provided a concise yet rich description of the evolution of the governing institutions of imperial China through periods of unity and disunity from the late Han (150 CE) to the late Qing (1850) dynasties. His account of change and continuity in governance over a two-thousand-year span of China’s history is an excellent and accessible introduction to a remarkably durable political tradition that resonates even today in the workings of the modern Chinese state and contemporary state-society relations. --William Joseph, Wellesley College

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Book Synopsis"P. J. Ivanhoe is one of the English-speaking world’s foremost translators and interpreters of classical Chinese philosophical texts. His translation of the Sunzi Bingfa reads beautifully, adorned only by sobering photographic plates of the famed terracotta army of the first Qin emperor that turn one back to the text in a properly reflective mood. The Introduction and endnotes are blessedly spare, providing just the right amount of interpretive scholarship to assist comprehension of the text, while not interfering with its intrinsic simplicity, clarity, and profundity." —Sumner B. Twiss, Distinguished Professor of Human Rights, Ethics, and Religion, Florida State UniversityTrade Review"Philip J. Ivanhoe’s translation of Sun Tzu's Art of War will be warmly embraced by students. His discussion in the Introduction about the text’s dating and authorship, as well as Chinese attitudes towards things military, is concise, informative, and up-to-date. The translation itself is a marvel—its language is simple and direct, making it immensely readable and clear." —Keith Knapp, is Westvaco Professor of National Security Studies, Department of History, The Citadel, The Military College of South Carolina

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Book SynopsisMuch is known of life during the Han Empire, but the historical evidence remains fragmentary, and nowhere do we find a continuous account of the life of any one individual.In this engaging volume, Michael Loewe mines the written and material records to depict the imagined life of an ordinary person, Bing Wu, from the hardships of his earliest years on a rural farm to his retirement from a respected position in government service. Underlying the tale of Bing is a richly detailed portrait of life during the Han--the arduous tasks of the conscript laborer; military service on the defense lines of the north; the travels of a merchant; the grueling conditions in an iron foundry; the construction of tombs; preparations for entering the civil service; the duties of a junior clerk and the governing of a commandery. Along the way, we are introduced to the operation of a crossbow; methods of telling time; the practice of writing; the rituals of divination; the ceremony of a state occasion, laws and the harsh consequences of breaking them; the workings of the central government and much more.Included are a concise introduction, explanatory endnotes to each chapter, a selection of illustrations, a map of the Han Empire, notes for further reading and an essay by Loewe entitled, "A Brief History of the Han Empire."Trade Reviewq>Only a master of the history of the early empires in China such as Michael Loewe could have spun this story tracing the gradual rise of a sympathetic character from plow boy to the official ranks at the Han court. Teachers will surely want to assign it to their students, as it perfectly illustrates key points that Loewe has made in more academic publications, for example, his Everyday Life in Early Imperial China during the Han Period 202 BC-AD 220. Comparative historians will find a wealth of information in it, including helpful notes suggesting further readings. Bing is as good as it gets in historical fiction. --Michael Nylan, University of California, BerkeleyFascinating account of Han society and social morality. Enjoyable to read. Great supplement for courses on traditional China. --Sue Fawn Chung, University of Nevada, Las VegasThis book is wonderful. Only someone with Loewe's deep and broad knowledge could provide such a work of historical fiction that gives life to the gleanings of historical research that are too scattered and incomplete for the less skilled to harvest. Add to this the interesting story and this makes for an effective, useful supplementary reading for courses on Chinese history. --Steven Davidson, Southwestern University

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Book SynopsisMuch is known of life during the Han Empire, but the historical evidence remains fragmentary, and nowhere do we find a continuous account of the life of any one individual.In this engaging volume, Michael Loewe mines the written and material records to depict the imagined life of an ordinary person, Bing Wu, from the hardships of his earliest years on a rural farm to his retirement from a respected position in government service. Underlying the tale of Bing is a richly detailed portrait of life during the Han--the arduous tasks of the conscript laborer; military service on the defense lines of the north; the travels of a merchant; the grueling conditions in an iron foundry; the construction of tombs; preparations for entering the civil service; the duties of a junior clerk and the governing of a commandery. Along the way, we are introduced to the operation of a crossbow; methods of telling time; the practice of writing; the rituals of divination; the ceremony of a state occasion, laws and the harsh consequences of breaking them; the workings of the central government and much more.Included are a concise introduction, explanatory endnotes to each chapter, a selection of illustrations, a map of the Han Empire, notes for further reading and an essay by Loewe entitled, "A Brief History of the Han Empire."Trade Reviewq>Only a master of the history of the early empires in China such as Michael Loewe could have spun this story tracing the gradual rise of a sympathetic character from plow boy to the official ranks at the Han court. Teachers will surely want to assign it to their students, as it perfectly illustrates key points that Loewe has made in more academic publications, for example, his Everyday Life in Early Imperial China during the Han Period 202 BC-AD 220. Comparative historians will find a wealth of information in it, including helpful notes suggesting further readings. Bing is as good as it gets in historical fiction. --Michael Nylan, University of California, BerkeleyFascinating account of Han society and social morality. Enjoyable to read. Great supplement for courses on traditional China. --Sue Fawn Chung, University of Nevada, Las VegasThis book is wonderful. Only someone with Loewe's deep and broad knowledge could provide such a work of historical fiction that gives life to the gleanings of historical research that are too scattered and incomplete for the less skilled to harvest. Add to this the interesting story and this makes for an effective, useful supplementary reading for courses on Chinese history. --Steven Davidson, Southwestern University

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Book SynopsisNo cycle of historical legends has enjoyed greater or more enduring popularity in China than that of the Three Kingdoms, which recounts the dramatic story of the civil wars (c. AD 180–220) that divided the old Han empire into the Shu-Han, Wei, and Wu states, and the eventual reunification of the realm under the Western Jin in AD 280.Trade ReviewBeginning with the swearing of brotherhood in the Peach Orchard and continuing on to the most famous battles and betrayals of the Three Kingdoms era, this selection of expertly translated plays enables readers to discover how the major heroes of the legend were portrayed on the Yuan and Ming stage. Informative introductions and annotations enhance enjoyment of the plays, as do appendices that expand on the core selections by providing alternate versions of some famous episodes. Translations of selected incidents from a popular history, the Sanguo zhi pinghua, enable comparisons between a popular historical account of these heroes’ careers and dramas about them. [This book is] indispensable as a companion to translations of the classic novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms, as a student introduction to Chinese culture and theater, or as a guide for any readers simply interested in Three Kingdoms lore. --Catherine Swatek, University of British ColumbiaBattles, Betrayals, and Brotherhood is a brilliant introduction to one of China's best-loved heroic traditions. And of course the translations are wonderful—very lively! --Katherine Carlitz, University of Pittsburgh

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Book SynopsisNo cycle of historical legends has enjoyed greater or more enduring popularity in China than that of the Three Kingdoms, which recounts the dramatic story of the civil wars (c. AD 180–220) that divided the old Han empire into the Shu-Han, Wei, and Wu states, and the eventual reunification of the realm under the Western Jin in AD 280.Trade ReviewBeginning with the swearing of brotherhood in the Peach Orchard and continuing on to the most famous battles and betrayals of the Three Kingdoms era, this selection of expertly translated plays enables readers to discover how the major heroes of the legend were portrayed on the Yuan and Ming stage. Informative introductions and annotations enhance enjoyment of the plays, as do appendices that expand on the core selections by providing alternate versions of some famous episodes. Translations of selected incidents from a popular history, the Sanguo zhi pinghua, enable comparisons between a popular historical account of these heroes’ careers and dramas about them. [This book is] indispensable as a companion to translations of the classic novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms, as a student introduction to Chinese culture and theater, or as a guide for any readers simply interested in Three Kingdoms lore. --Catherine Swatek, University of British ColumbiaBattles, Betrayals, and Brotherhood is a brilliant introduction to one of China's best-loved heroic traditions. And of course the translations are wonderful—very lively! --Katherine Carlitz, University of Pittsburgh

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