1. One of the sections that I found most interesting in Wasserman’s book is the one in which he discusses the similarities between China and the United States despite our general criticism of the country. In it he points out that China is developing in a way similar to the way the U.S. was developing in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s. What similarities do you see between the United States and China? Do you think that we can look at China as a sort of time bubble to help us better examine the developmental history of the United States?
2. Mao’s rule was one of mistakes and pronounced hypocrisy, and many view him in a negative light. Despite the horrible events of the Great Leap Forward and the culturally destructive aftermath of The Cultural Revolution, do you think that China would be in the power position it is in today without these missteps and experimentation with culture, politics and global participation?
Sam- Good questions here…The first one hits on a general theme running throughout Wasserstrom’s book: China and the U.S. have structural/historical similarities that are often obfuscated by divergent political/social ideologies (at least at the governmental levels). One thing to think about in pursuing a comparative analysis as embedded in your question is: what is different about the world today, compared to the late 1800/early 1900s? That is, what kind of structural/technological/economic systems surround China’s “progress”, yet were not even remote realities 100+ years before?
As for the legacy of Mao and the Cultural Revolution, definitely pay attention to how interpretations of the past manifest in China today; we have encountered a range of artistic responses that seem to oscillate between nostalgia and ironic reappropriation…
There’s loads of things different about the world today. Advances in technology, global communication, cultural tolerance and mixing make adaptation and development able to happen at the blink of an eye. This allows China to do anything it wants concerning its development as quickly as it wants when it wants wherever it wants. While this is amazing to think about and look at, I think it presents a fair number of problems. Differing generations are unable to ease into these new changes. This creates rifts between the older generation of Chinese still accustomed to the rural, more culturally oriented lifestyle and the rapidly growing urbanized generation so eager to catch up with the rest of the world. Also I think that without pacing, China tends to rely less on applying original ideas to these new found developments and focuses more on imitating others, which could potentially endanger its rich heritage and culture.
I was also interested in the parallels between China’s development and development in the United States. Wasserstrom notes the role bloggers are playing in highlighting corruption in China, especially in the bureaucracy. (pp. 129) It would be interesting to note similarities and differences between these actions being taken by bloggers in China and reform movements in the United States in the early 1900s. Are there similar themes and methods that translate between the two?
Are there bloggers in China speaking out about child labor? If so, there could be parallels drawn between that and the reform movements involving children and work during the early 1900’s.
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