Centering his analysis in the dynamic forces of modern East Asian history, Kuan-Hsing Chen recasts cultural studies as a politically urgent global endeavor. He argues that the intellectual and subjective work of decolonization begun across East Asia after the Second World War was stalled by the cold war. At the same time, the work of deimperialization became impossible to imagine in imperial centers such as Japan and the United States. Chen contends that it is now necessary to resume those tasks, and that decolonization, deimperialization, and an intellectual undoing of the cold war must proceed simultaneously. Combining postcolonial studies, globalization studies, and the emerging field of “Asian studies in Asia,” he insists that those on both sides of the imperial divide must assess the conduct, motives, and consequences of imperial histories. Chen is one of the most important intellectuals working in East Asia today; his writing has been influential in Taiwan, South Korea, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, and mainland China for the past fifteen years. As a founding member of the Inter-Asia Cultural Studies Society and its journal, he has helped to initiate change in the dynamics and intellectual orientation of the region, building a network that has facilitated inter-Asian connections. Asia as Method encapsulates Chen’s vision and activities within the increasingly “inter-referencing” East Asian intellectual community and charts necessary new directions for cultural studies.
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A leading proponent of knowledge exchanges within East Asia and of an international cultural studies insists that those on both sides of the imperial divide must assess the conduct, motives, and consequences of imperialism.
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Preface vi Introduction: Globalization and Deimperialization 1 1. The Imperialist Eye: The Discourse of the Southward Advance and the Subimperial Imaginary 17 2. Decolonization: A Geocolonial Historical Materialism 65 3. De-Cold War: The Im/possibility of "Great Reconciliation" 115 4. Deimperialization: Club 51 and the Imperialist Assumption of Democracy 161 5. Asia as Method: Overcoming the Present Conditions of Knowledge Production 211 Epilogue: The Imperial Order of Things, or Notes on Han Chinese Racism 257 Notes 269 Special Terms 287 Bibligraphy 291 Index 305
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“This book is not difficult to read and if you want to tap into some very contemporaneous thoughts on Asian political and economic issues in relation to the colonized subject, and the colonizing subject, then I venture to say this book will exceed your expectations. I found it rich and emotional, and extremely useful for thoughts on Inter-Asian concerns. It is especially relevant for us all as we live within the forces of globalisation, and in the Asian region, and for Australians as colonized and imperialised subjects. . . . I can highly recommend this book to all who are involved in Asian Studies.“ - Be Ryan, M/C Reviews
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Cultural theorist rethinks the aftermath of imperialism and colonialism through Asia.

Produktdetaljer

ISBN
9780822346647
Publisert
2010-04-16
Utgiver
Vendor
Duke University Press
Vekt
594 gr
Aldersnivå
UP, P, 05, 06
Språk
Product language
Engelsk
Format
Product format
Innbundet

Forfatter

Biographical note

Kuan-Hsing Chen is a professor in the Institute for Social Research and Cultural Studies at Chiao Tung University in Taiwan. He has written and edited many books in Chinese. He is co-executive editor of the journal Inter-Asia Cultural Studies.