The transformation of Asia, circa. 1800 to the present day
Mike Godley and Ian Copland
6 points * 2 lectures and 1 tutorial per week * Second semester * Clayton
By 1800 much of South and Southeast Asia was under European rule. By the late 19th century China and Japan, though still formally independent, had become subject to varying degrees of European influence. Today, China and India are once again autonomous countries, significant players on the world stage, while Japan bids fair to overtake the USA as the world's strongest economic power. This subject seeks to shed light on this remarkable reversal of Asia's fortunes. How did India, China and Japan manage to throw off the shackles of imperialism, and how did they adjust to the economic and cultural challenge posed by a confident, industrialised and democratising Europe? And what of the future? Does the Japanese `economic miracle' signal the beginning of an era of Asian world dominance? Lectures and tutorials will focus on the big picture, providing thereby a broad, connected survey of Asia's `renaissance' from 1800 to the present; but students will have the opportunity, in essay work, to specialise on areas and themes of their choice.
Assessment
Written (2500 words): 60% * Examination (2 hours): 30% * Class participation/attendance: 10%
Prescribed texts
Fairbank J K and Reischauer E O China: Tradition and transformation Allen and Unwin, 1989
Farmer E L and others (eds) A comparative history of civilization in Asia vol. 2, Addison-Wesley, 1977
Reischauer E U and Craig A M Japan: Tradition and transformation Allen and Unwin, 1989
Spear P A history of India vol. 2, Penguin, 1970
Recommended texts
Ch'en Jerome China and the West Hutchinson, 1979
Farmer B H An introduction to South Asia Methuen, 1983
Hibbert C The dragon wakes: China and the West 1792-1911 Penguin, 1984
Wilkinson E Japan versus the West: Images and reality Penguin, 1991