China's Transition [Hardcover]

Andrew J. Nathan (Author)

Book Description

Series: Studies of the East Asian Institute | Publication Date: January 15, 1998

With more than one billion people, China represents both an ocean of economic opportunity and a frustrating backwater of continuing brutal political repression. What are the prospects for democratic evolution in a nation with one of the world's poorest human rights records? How have other nations responded to China since the recent, dramatic opening of its economic system-and how should they respond in the future? These are some of the most important questions confronting both the United States and the international community.

On democracy, human rights, and the move to integrate China into the international economy; on Mao Zedong's regime and the reform since his death; and on the Taiwan experiment and Hong Kong's reintegration with China, Nathan offers an accessible introduction to the intricate web of contemporary Chinese politics and China's changing place in the global system.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

In this collection of 16 essays, Nathan (East Asian Inst., Columbia Univ.) provides several different approaches to analyzing present-day Chinese politics and political culture. Written for an academic audience, the essays contain abstract concepts such as "cultural relativism," "conservative modernization," and "hermeneutic versus positivistic approaches to distinctiveness"; provide detailed data on, for example, Taiwan's legislature and political party system; and present the results of (groundbreaking) survey research on political efficacy in China. This is in sharp contrast to Andrew J. Nathan and Robert S. Ross's The Great Wall and the Empty Fortress (LJ 7/97), in which the authors addressed the broader spectrum of informed readers. On the other hand, Nathan's main points should interest informed readers as well as academics?that absolute power allowed Mao to be corrupt; that nothing inherent in Chinese culture renders it incapable of evolving into a democracy; and that the United States should not apologize for addressing human rights issues in China and should respond appropriately to abuses.?Peggy Spitzer Christoff, Oak Park, Ill.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

Reading this excellent work by Andrew Nathan on the potential for a Chinese transition to democracy compels one to probe one's own unexamined presuppositions and unconscious cultural prejudices.

(Edward Friedman, University of Wisconsin-Madison Philosophy East & West )

Such rich, thoughtful, and rigorous analysis makes China's Transition an important book in the study of contemporary Chinese politics. It represents a remarkable methodological achievement that should be the envy of all students of Chinese politics.

(Minxin Pei, Princeton University Political Science Quarterly )

[A] deeply perceptive and eloquent collection of essays.... What distinguishes Nathan's approach is that he takes up the political question of how to negotiate with Beijing about human rights.

(New York Review of Books )

Glitters with refreshing analyses on a wide range of literary, political, and ideological issues in recent PRC history... Packed with great insights and excellent analyses, it should be considered indispensable reading for any serious student of contemporary Chinese politics.

(Journal of Oriental Studies )

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 336 pages
• Publisher: Columbia University Press (January 15, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0231110227
• ISBN-13: 978-0231110228
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.3 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,536,215 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Highly Readable, January 10, 2007

By 

Mary (Washington, DC, United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: China's Transition (Hardcover)

This is an exellent and highly readable account/analysis of contemporary Chinese political life and attitudes. I quarrel with the Chapter order. I would go to Chapter 10 first, where Professor Nathan explains his positions on US-China relations and the reasons behind those positions. He is both principled and commonsensible on such concerns as "human rights." Read Chapters 1 and 3 in sequence and weigh your own reactions. Academic jargon does surface in certain parts of this text but it is worth plowing through. The presence of Chinese contributors gives a valuable cultural nuance to Nathan's own culturally-derived perspectives. Chapter 2 should be reserved until one is well through the book. Cruelty is present in any society; has it been especially prevalent in China? On our side of the world there is a parable about a mote and a beam that is always worth one more read. (This review is an edited version of an earlier review which I submitted.)

3 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent and highly readable account of contemporary China, July 1, 1998

By 

[e-mail] (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: China's Transition (Hardcover)

[Please delete my earlier reviews.]

This is an excellent and highly readable account/analysis of contemporary Chinese political life and attitudes. I quarrel with the Chapter order. I would go to Chapter 10 first, where Professor Nathan explains his positions on US-China relations and the reasons behind those position. He is both principled and commonsensible on such concerns as "human rights." From Chapter 16 I would next read Chaps. 10 and 11. Academic jargon does surface in Chap. 10 but it is well worth plowing ahead and seeing how the chapter ends. The presence of Chinese contributors gives a valuable cultural nuance to Nathan's own culturally-derived perspectives. I am surprised, given Prof. Nathan's sophistication, that he was surprised by the Chinese response to his introduction to the memoirs of Mao's late personal physician. Read Chaps 1 and 3 in sequence and weigh your own reactions. Chap. 2 should be reserved until one is well through the rest of the book. Cruelty is present in any society; has it been especially prevalent in China? From our side of the world, there is a parable about a mote and a beam that is always well worth another read.

7 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Slanderous account of the People's Republic of China, August 4, 2001

By 

William Podmore (London United Kingdom) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: China's Transition (Hardcover)

Professor Nathan wrote the foreword to the squalid fiction The Private Life of Chairman Mao, published by Random House in 1994. In this new book, he maintains his hostility to China, writing that "China seems to get worse the more we learn about it." He insults his American and Chinese critics, claiming that they do not debate properly, yet his book is full of unfounded accusations, introduced by `the story is told that .. ' and `allegedly', and ending in abuse.

Nathan argues that the USA should use the ideas of constitutionalism, democracy and human rights to destroy China's state. As the war against Yugoslavia showed, moral intervention is only an opportunity away from military intervention.

Yet back-handedly, Nathan mentions achievements that make his hostility look jejune. He notes the Chinese people's legitimate nationalism, their policy of peace and non-intervention and their efforts to defend their sovereignty and national unity, recovered after a century of neocolonialism and exploitation. Economically, China was a century behind the West. Nathan concedes that China has achieved industrial self-sufficiency; its economy grows by 11% a year; it feeds a population of a billion and can still export food; it has created an educated and cultured people and provides medical care good enough to establish a life expectancy of 69 years. It uses capital produced in China to boost its productivity; it retains collective ownership of the land and rejects IMF overlordship; it has achieved massive urbanisation, relatively equitable distribution of wealth, and excellent means of communication.

The Chinese Government has united and directed this vast and most disparate nation. It has ended the violent policy swings and `shock treatments', successfully integrated Hong Kong and publicly and effectively campaigned against corruption. There is little demand for pluralism, because the Party encompasses, debates and resolves a wide range of views: Nathan's own survey showed that less than 18% of the population favoured the kind of political reform that the USA demands.