HIST 245 China and the World

This course will look at the relationship of China to the world over the last 600 years. It will emphasize the global flow of trade goods and commodities, ideas and ideologies, and religions and people. And it will look at the shifting position of China within modern international relations, including a critical investigation of the Cold War, Thirdworldism, the environment and development, and neoliberal globalization. Students will gain a working knowledge of both Chinese and world history. They will be encouraged to question the narratives we tend to tell ourselves about world history and China's role within it. This is particularly important as the level of interactions between China and the U.S. has been increasing markedly over the past few decades. We will call into question narratives of the "rise of the West," just as we will call into question the contemporary discourse on the "rise of China."