3.0

Average Course Rating

This seminar examines inter-regional connections and diplomacy in maritime Asia (focusing on the region around the Straits of Malacca, the South and East China Seas, and the Taiwan Straits). In addition to a survey of the application of world-system theories on Asia, the reading materials include the roles of trading diasporas in world history, the maritime silk Road, the Chinese tribute trade system, the British free-trade imperialism, American open-door policy, Japanese pan-Asianism, Cold-war diplomacy, and the Beijing-centric belt-and-road initiatives. The goal is to explore the prospects and limitations of examining inter-Asian connections beyond political states.