This course aims at examining the main aspects of Chinese politics—how the People’s Republic of China (PRC) is politically organized and governed. The emphasis will be a historical and comparative description of the governmental institutions, political culture, and political party—the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). We will also discuss and assess the CCP-PRC government’s policy-making in the areas of the economy, sociocultural affairs, disease-control, and foreign policy. The aim is to understand the internal sociopolitical structure and dynamics of the PRC as a rising world power, representing an alternative mode of sociopolitical governance and a distinctive model of economic development.
There is no special requirement for this course except a willingness to read, think, and learn. The class will be organized as a seminar with a clear emphasis on having an extensive classroom participation of the students.
An effort of following the current events in the PRC is encouraged. Publications such as The New York Times, The Washington Post, and the South China Morning Post as well as the web-based news services list below are useful sources for the different views about China in English:
China Digital Times: http://chinadigitaltimes.net
China Media Project: http://cmp.hku.hk
China Watch: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sponsored/china-watch/
The Atlantic-China: http://www.theatlantic.com/photo/categories/china/
China Daily: http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/index.html
The students are expected to participate in classroom discussions. The assigned readings are expected to be finished before classes.
William A. Joseph ed., Politics in China: An Introduction, Third Edition, Oxford University Press. 2019 (Joseph)
Fei-Ling Wang, The China Order: Centralia, World Empire, and the Nature of Chinese Power, SUNY Press, 2017 (Wang I)
Fei-Ling Wang, The China Record: An Assessment of the People's Republic. SUNY Press, 2023 (Wang II)
Requirement Marks (%)
Participation/Attendance 200 20
Group Presentation 200 10
Reading Report 200 20
Research Paper 400 30
Total 1,000 100
Two unexcused absences will incur penalty
Students are expected to maintain the highest standards of academic integrity. All work submitted must be original and properly cited. Plagiarism, cheating, or any form of academic dishonesty will result in immediate consequences as outlined in the university's academic integrity policy.