At China's Edges

What does it mean to live on the borders of a rising world power? This course explores the commonalities and differences of the vast areas where China meets Central, South, Northeast, and Southeast Asia. We will analyze the modern histories of such places as Xinjiang, Hong Kong; Taiwan; Manchuria; Sichuan; Yunnan; and Tibet through a number of overarching themes, starting with environment and place-making. Other topics include comparative colonialisms and experiences of decolonization; the experience of war in borderlands; conceptions of ethnicity over time; and nation-building, citizenship, and the “art of not being governed.”