Chinese History from James Mann’s Perspective Essay

Introduction

During the week I learned a lot about the struggle of Chinese people for development and progress. I learned a lot about attempts of some forces to make the country be more like western (e.g. American) states. However, I understood that Chinese people had their way as they always preferred a strong power to the rule of several groups which often failed to agree on something.

Mann’s Perspective and the History of China

Mann argues that US Presidents as well as the US business elite have always seen China as a country that is about to change¹ Many Americans believe China is about to adopt the American system. However, Mann states that this change is unlikely to happen.² As far as I am concerned, I agree with the author. I also believe that this scenario, i.e. the Chinese political system will not undergo any significant change, is the most plausible one. From this week’s lectures, I found out that Chinese royal families had to withstand numerous rebellions. The history of China suggests that Chinese people tend to be led by a strong power.

During this week I learned about Qing reforms and the struggle between the Qing Dynasty and the Manchu Dynasty. Notably, both royal families opposed the influence of western countries. However, the two dynasties understood that the country needed changes. Notably, the reforms led to a lot of significant changes in Chinese society. However, these reforms did not affect the major peculiarity of the Chinese political system, i.e. autocracy. From the lectures, I found out that the two dynasties were withdrawn. Seemingly, Chinese people did not want to have an autocratic power. However, I think the main reason for this was due to the inability of the forces in power to face urgent social and economic problems. More so, according to the lectures, the two dynasties only worsen the situation in the country.

The reforms led to the decentralization of power. The reforms also led to alienation from the political tradition. Of course, there were some positive effects. Thus, military forces were reformed, which led to the creation of quite a powerful and modern army. Education also benefited from the reforms of both dynasties. This led to the rise of the class of intellectuals, who could come up with effective solutions to improve the situation in the country. Nonetheless, the reforms were not popular as they were not implemented properly. The two dynasties proved to be too weak to remain in power. Notably, when the Manchu Dynasty was overthrown, the political system in the country changed. Several forces appeared. However, soon these forces were suppressed by the new force, i.e. the Communist Party.

Conclusion

Therefore, I assume that Chinese people tend to follow a leader rather than a group of people having different viewpoints and perspectives. By mentioning a leader, I do not mean an individual. The main idea is that a strong power that has a particular plan can lead to China. During this week’s lectures, I have understood that the history of the country confirms my assumption.

Bibliography

Mann, James. “U.S.–China Relationship: Economic and Security in Perspective.” Testimony before the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission Hearing, 2007.

Footnotes

1. Mann, James, “U.S.–China Relationship: Economic and Security in Perspective” (testimony before the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission Hearing, 2007), 2.
2. Ibid., 1.