Topic

China

Japan

India

Southeast Asia

Pre-colonial Systems of Govt/Cultural Bases of Politics

Imperial System (emperor, civil servants)

Imperial System/ Shogunate

Indianized Kingdoms/Hindu-Buddhist God-Kings and Islamic Sultanates

Indianized Kingdoms/Hindu-Buddhist God-Kings and Islamic Sultanates

Encountering the West/Colonialism

Breakdown of Qing dynasty.  Decline re: West.  Searching for answers. Century of Humiliations from 1840. Opium War, Taiping Rebellion (leader: Hong Xiuchuan).

Confronting West by learning from the West. Rapid Modernization.  Meiji Restoration.  Democratic institutions devolve to authoritarianism/totalitarianism.

Figures: Fukuzawa Yukichi, Saigo Takamori, Mito nativists.

Sub-continent falls to British colonialism.  Political and economic transformations wrought by colonialism.

Most of Southeast Asia falls to Western colonialism: Philippines (Spain/US); Indochina (France); Malaysia (UK), Indonesia (Netherlands).  Thailand remains nominally independent.  Political and economic transformations of countries.  How Thailand managed to retain its freedom.

Birth of Nationalism/

Revolution

Looking for answers in democracy, Communism; birth of Chinese nationalism; oppose Japanese colonialism. Nationalist (KMT)-Communist (CCP) Civil War (Reasons for Communist victory/Nationalist loss).  MOVIE: Founding of a Republic.

State Shinto, War to expand Japanese empire brings total defeat and restructuring at the hands of the West (US).

Congress/Gandhi spearhead independence movement (Gandhi's tactics including non-cooperation, non-violent resistance et al).  Unable to reconcile pluralism of subcontinent.  India broken apart into two states: India and Pakistan (the latter as a national homeland for South Asian Muslims).  Gandhi assassinated by Hindu fanatic for being too soft on Muslims.

Armed revolution in Vietnam (lost by non-Communists by 1960 when party opts for combined military and political strategy).  Who is fighting whom? How do the Communists win?

Independence
Challenges:

National Consolidation, Development,

Democracy

Mao’s political and economic policies, with emphasis on the Cultural Revolution (challenges of development and democracy, Son of the Revolution).

Deng’s reforms, including responsibility system decentralization, etc.  (Challenge of Development).

Tiananmen Square, Arrest of Ai Weiwei (Challenge of Democracy).

Restructuring at the hands of the US. New Constitution (Article 9 renouncing war).

Rule by Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) (Challenge of Democracy).  Can there be a single-party dominant democratic system?  Why was LDP dominant?.

Economic miracle (Challenge of Development. What policies were used?).

Challenges of mature economics and politics (need for reform, stagnation).

Communal politics: Congress v. Bharatiya Janata Party (Challenge of National Consolidation).

Military rule in Pakistan, Bangladesh (Challenge of Democracy).

High-tech industry and outsourcing (Challenge of Development).

Military rule in some countries (Challenge of Democracy).

Extreme Communism of Khmer Rouge in Cambodia (all challenges. MOVIE: KILLING FIELDS)..

Philippine politics on Negros (Challenges of Democracy and Development/land reform, Dead Season).

East Asian Miracle (Challenge of Development.  How was it achieved?).