'The China Question: Eight Centuries of Fantasy and Fear'
Key information
- Date
- Time
-
5:00 pm to 6:30 pm
- Venue
- SOAS Main Building
- Room
- R301
- Event type
- Seminar
About this event
Professor Ho-fung Hung will talk about his latest book The China Question: Eight Centuries of Fantasy and Fear.
For centuries, Western scholars portrayed China either as a land of superior morality, economy, and governance or as a formidable country of pagans that posed a global threat to Western values.
Idealised images of China were used to shame rulers for their incompetence, while China was demonised as an external threat to cover up domestic political failures. In the 20th century, the geopolitics of global capitalism have facilitated more nuanced perspectives, but the diversifying of knowledge about China is far from complete.
In this thought-provoking study, Ho-fung Hung finds that both Western elites and China's authoritarian regime today continue to promote many Orientalist stereotypes to advance their economic interests and political projects. He shows how big-picture historical, social, and economic changes are inextricably linked to fluctuations in the realm of ideas. Only open debate can overcome extremes of fantasy and fear.
Registration
This event is open to the public and free to attend, however registration is required. This seminar is taking place on campus and will not be recorded or live-streamed.
Organiser
This event has been organised by the SOAS China Institute.
About the speaker
Ho-fung Hung is the Henry M. and Elizabeth P. Wiesenfeld Professor in Political Economy in the Department of Sociology and the Nitze School of Advanced International Studies at the Johns Hopkins University. He is the author of Protest with Chinese Characteristics (Columbia, 2011), The China Boom (Columbia, 2015), City on the Edge: Hong Kong under Chinese Rule (Cambridge, 2022), Clash of Empires: From “Chimerica” to the “New Cold War” (Cambridge, 2022), The China Question: Eight Centuries of Fantasy and Fear (Cambridge, 2026) and Greenback Empire: Global Dollar Dominance and the New Cold War (Chicago, 2026). His academic publications have been translated into at least 12 different languages. His analysis of global and Chinese political economy has been cited or featured in major media outlets worldwide. He has served as an expert witness at the US Congressional-Executive Commission on China.
Chair
This event will be chaired by Professor Steve Tsang (Director, SOAS China Institute).
Contact
Email: sci@soas.ac.uk
Image credit: Weichao Deng on Unsplash
Book cover
