The Sextants of Beijing: Global Currents in Chinese History [Paperback]

Joanna Waley-Cohen (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 2000 | ISBN-10: 0393320510 | ISBN-13: 978-0393320510

This powerful work puts to rest the long-held myth that Chinese civilization is monolithic, unchanging, and perennially cut off from the rest of the world.

An inviting history of China from the days of the ancient Silk Road to the present, this book describes a civilization more open and engaged with the rest of the world than we think. Whether in trade, religious belief, ideology, or technology, China has long taken part in fruitful exchange with other cultures. With implications for our understanding of and our policies toward China, this is a must read. Maps

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

The West has long regarded China as monolithic and self-isolated, hopelessly mired in its traditions. By presenting examples of China's open-mindedness, pragmatism, and willingness to experiment with foreign ideas, The Sextants of Beijing explodes this myth. Qianlong's famous rejection of the Macartney mission of 1792, which attempted to establish trade relations between Britain and China--"We have never valued ingenious articles, nor do we have the slightest need of your country's manufactures"--has usually been taken at face value and interpreted as backward-looking arrogance. In fact, when Qianlong issued that statement, he was nevertheless attempting to acquire European-style artillery, following a history of aggressive pursuit of foreign trade going back to the Han dynasty (about 2,000 years ago, that is).

For much of its dynastic history, China has been ruled by its aggressive northern neighbors. This has made China extremely wary of foreign influences and hypersensitive to anything externally imposed, a sensitivity still evident in China today. Joanna Waley-Cohen, professor of history at New York University, analyzes the historical experience that has led to China's raw nerves. She describes China's relations with the West over the last four centuries, beginning with the Jesuit missions, through the Opium Wars and China's near dismemberment by the colonizing European powers, to its rejection of heavy-handed Soviet aid. While clarifying China's ambivalent attitudes toward the West, she shows conclusively that the nation's restraint and reserve should not be defined as isolationism. --John Stevenson --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Library Journal

Waley-Cohen, an eminent scholar and professor of Chinese history at New York University, seeks to debunk the stereotype of China as isolationist by providing a pithy analysis of Chinese history from the Tang dynasty (618-907) to the present day. Writing for the general reader, Waley-Cohen discusses numerous ways China has been interested in and open to foreign ideas including military developments, science and technology, trade, and religion. One interesting distinction is that the Chinese leadership has generally been distrustful of Catholic missionaries because they adhere to an authority outside of China (i.e., the Pope) but have appreciated Protestant efforts to teach and provide social services. The author emphasizes that the official rhetoric is much different from the reality: Chinese leaders realize the need to "transcend both the modern West and traditional China." Though this book has no illustrations or maps (in contrast to J.A.G. Roberts's Modern China: An Illustrated History, LJ 8/98, also written for a general readership), it is nonetheless suitable for libraries with large history collections.?Peggy Spitzer Christoff, Oak Park, IL
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company (April 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0393320510
• ISBN-13: 978-0393320510
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.3 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #806,349 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Bucking the conventional wisdom of Chinese isolationism, July 28, 2000

By 

Michael Le Houllier (Taichung City, Taiwan) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Sextants of Beijing: Global Currents in Chinese History (Hardcover)

Many Westerners have traditionally considered China to be an isolationist culture. They cite the Great Wall being designed to keep out foreigners and resistance to Christianity and the refusal of the McCartney mission in the 1790s to prove this. However, all through history, the Chinese have indeed engaged the world and have been influenced by it. Waley-Cohen does an excellent job of narrating this in her book.

She reveals all through Chinese history how the Chinese adopted religious ideas from overseas (notably India), science (initially from Islamic regions and later Westerners), to the 1960s, when many Westerners assumed that China was closed to the world because it was closed to them. In fact, China was open to other Asians and to Africans.

Waley-Cohen's writing is easily readible and is of value both to the China watcher like myself, as well as the layperson wishing to understand the "Middle Kingdom" a bit better.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good Thesis but boring at times., January 1, 2006

By 

Shogun Len "tokieyasu" (Arizona) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Sextants of Beijing: Global Currents in Chinese History (Paperback)

There was a time we simply taught that China was isolated from the rest of the world by mountains, seas, deserts, and its own ethnocentrism. More and more we are finding out that this "white lie" of history is an over simplification. The Silk Road, Zheng He, are just two examples of ways China was not as isolated as we used to think.

The Sextants of Beijing is a wonderful look (especially in the opening chapters) on just how China was connected to the rest of the world in ways we have overlooked or just did not understand. Personally I felt the later chapters got boring and less interesting, but the first 1/3 of the book is great.

For a new look at China read this book and combine it with 1421 and the new biography of Ghengis Khan.

1 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good analysis of western influence in China, February 26, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: The Sextants of Beijing: Global Currents in Chinese History (Paperback)

Wonderfully written assessment of the Western Influence in China.