Rivers of Empire: Water and Environment in Chinese History

Catalog description

This class examines how water shaped the making and unmaking of states, societies, and environments in China from antiquity to the present. Rivers and canals were not only vital arteries of agriculture and commerce but also sites of disaster, ecological change, and political power. This course traces the history of flood control, irrigation, and canal building; the role of droughts and climate shocks in famine and dynastic change; frontier water management in Inner Asia; the ecological consequences of war; and the rise of Maoist hydraulic megaprojects and contemporary debates on environmental authoritarianism. Through a combination of historical scholarship, primary sources, and creative assignments, students will learn to see water as both a material force and a political/cultural metaphor. Case studies range from the Yellow River and the Grand Canal to the Three Gorges Dam and the South--North Water Transfer Project, with comparative perspectives on the Ohio & Erie Canal and China's transboundary rivers. Assignments encourage both analytical and imaginative approaches, culminating in a "water biography" that treats a river, canal, irrigation system, or dam as a historical actor with its own life story. The class also encourages local engagement with the water infrastructure in Cleveland. Students are encouraged to participate in Ohio & Erie Canal cleanups and/or paddle session with the Cleveland Dragon Boat Association. Offered as ASIA 291 , ESTD 291 , and HSTY 291 . Counts as a Communication Intensive course. Counts as a Understanding Global Perspectives course.