The Political Economy of China: Policy and Development from Antiquity to Revolution

Catalog description

Welcome to the Political Economy of China! Over the course of the semester, you'll gain a rigorous, historically informed understanding of the long-term trajectory of policy and economic change in China from antiquity to the present day. By taking a long-term approach, we'll examine the extent to which contemporary Chinese political economy is the result of modern innovations, historical contingency, and/or path-dependent trends with their roots deep in the imperial past. To take an example very much in the news today, the mainstream media routinely describes Xi Jinping as a new emperor, a recrudescence of Mao, or a sui generis product of China's current social and political conditions. These descriptions are evocative; but are they accurate? Only by taking a closer look at the historical record can we isolate the evolution of its economic institutions and practices. For many students, this course will also be directly useful to your professional career. In the business, NGO, and policy worlds, analysts often make predictions based on historical precedent, but do so with only a hazy understanding of the Chinese past. A more robust grasp of the history will give you a competitive advantage whether you are researching state-owned enterprise reform, geopolitical competition, or market demand for new products and services.