Description
Book SynopsisChina is on the rise in the globalized world. The relationship between China and the United States has become the most important global issue in the twenty-first century. It is urgent to understand what is happening in China and where China is heading. However, there are many misconceptions about China in the West, which affect Westerners' ability to objectively understand China, and, ultimately influence the making of foreign policy toward China. The author attempts to challenge the misconceptions coming from both Western societies and China, and offer an integrated picture of contemporary China through systematically examining the major aspects of contemporary Chinese society and culture with the most recent data, and presents convincing arguments in eighteen chapters for spurring mutual understanding between China and the West. The author intends this book to be an interdisciplinary and comprehensive guide to China for a general audience, and it covers a wide variety of topics, inc
Trade ReviewAiming to deconstruct several myths about contemporary China and assist foreign policy experts engaging with Beijing, Zhou provides an overview of the country's long history and its current problems for a foreign readership. An admirable departure from ultra-nationalist apologies, the book offers a refreshingly balanced discussion of political repression, gender equality, environmental degradation, and human rights issues related to explosive capitalism. Zhou also disproves the fear-based theory that China's development and growth are direct threats to the US, and repeatedly asserts that China's future prosperity depends on thorough political reform. . . .Zhou clearly writes with students in mind; his book addresses nearly every topic that students hunger to understand. Specific chapters could be assigned in virtually any class, and his book would work wonderfully in political science, international relations, and public policy library collections. Students writing research papers in these fields will find many citations to relevant scholarship. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Especially for undergraduate and professional readers. * CHOICE *
Jinghao Zhou asks important questions in his attempt at “Understanding Contemporary China,” as his book’s sub-title states. As a result of grappling with big issues, his work provides a good text for an introductory course on contemporary Chinese politics. * Journal of Chinese Political Science *
Chinese vs. Western Perspectives: Understanding Contemporary China is a wonderful insider look from outside China. Unlike most Western scholars writing about China, Jinghao Zhou lived in China for the most part of his adult life and knows the Chinese culture and politics intimately. After teaching and living in the U.S. for many years, he is also able to see China from a distance. As a result, he has a unique perspective on China. His book represents one of the best scholarship in the field. -- Dongping Han, Warren Wilson College
The book provides a comprehensive and insightful narrative of the multifaceted stories of contemporary China. Its examination of the paradoxes and dilemmas of the Chinese experience, placed within a historical context as well as an analytical framework, is a valuable addition to the existing literature in the field of China Studies. -- Sun Yi, University of San Diego
Zhou’s ambitious book covers a broad range of topics that can help readers unfamiliar with China recognize the wide array of complex issues that have shaped contemporary Chinese society, culture, politics, and economics. While covering immense historical periods and cultural traditions, he synthesizes both Chinese and Western academic perspectives from many disciplines into a very readable book. -- Eriberto P. Lozada, Davidson College
Table of ContentsPreface Acknowledgments 1. Roots of Contemporary China 2. Chinese Family 3. Population and Development 4. Status of Chinese Women 5. Globalization and Chinese Women 6. Chinese Economy 7. China’ Rise and Environmental Degradation 8. Chinese Political System 9. Rampant Corruption and Chinese Political System 10. Traditional Chinese Religions 11. Chinese Christianity in the Post-Mao Era 12. Will Confucianism Be Able to Help China’s Democratization? 13. Marxism and Maoism 14. Media in China: Internet and Chinese Cinema 15. U.S.-China Relations 16. Does China’s Rise Threaten the United States? 17. Finding Common Ground for Chinese and Western Perspectives 18. Future of China: Undemocratic China Cannot Rule the World Bibliography Index About the Author
