This course is designed as an introduction to the contemporary political system of the People’s Republic of China. The objective of the course is to introduce students to the basic aspects of political institutions and five generations of leadership since 1949, as well as major events and policies in Chinese political life. The course will cover the following major topics: the 1949 revolution, the Great Leap Forward, the Culture Revolution, post-Mao economic and political reforms, five generations of leadership, Sino-U.S. relations and the relationship between China and North Korea. Attention will be devoted to contemporary political systems, mass politics, grassroots democracy, major policies (one-child policy, media policy) and foreign relations. The course will also discuss future scenarios of China by exploring the possibility of China’s democratization or other forms of authoritarianism.Suggested Reading: Chinese Politics: An Introduction, James Wang, 7th edition.
Richard Baum, Burying Mao: Chinese Politics in the Age of Deng Xiaoping, 1996, Princeton University Press.
• Kellee S Tsai, Capitalism without Democracy, 2007, Princeton University Press
Peter Gries, Stanley Rosen, Chinese Politics: State, Society and the Market, 2010, London and New York: Routledge.
Class size limit: 36.