The multiple trajectories of a Taiwanese-centric history

The Centre of Taiwan Studies is delighted to welcome Dr Evan Dawley to give a talk as part of this year’s Centre of Taiwan Studies Summer School on Taiwan’s history from a people-centred perspective, tracing the long-term formation of the island’s contemporary polity.

Taiwan’s society contains a complex, multi-racial and multi-ethnic populace that is fiercely engaged in vibrant democratic politics and a wide range of other civic engagement. Nevertheless, in today’s world it is mostly known for how it fits into or challenges the national interests of other countries, or for the useful technology that its companies produce. In other words, the interests and histories of the people of Taiwan are at best a secondary concern or an afterthought. As a result, casual observers of Taiwan do not understand the reasons underlying the choices that its citizens make in their identities, their internal and external relations, and their politics. 

This talk will discuss the approach I have taken to Taiwan’s history in Taiwan: A People’s History, one that place the people and the very long-term formation of the contemporary polity at the center, rather than the regimes that have governed Taiwan, in whole or in part, over the centuries. It will do so by tracing four trajectories along which Taiwan’s history has unfolded: Indigenous-isation, Sinicisation, Taiwanisation, and Democratisation.

Image credit: Lisanto 李奕良 via Unsplash.