The China Order: Centralia, World Empire, and the Nature of Chinese Power

by Fei-Ling Wang

What does the rise of China represent, and how should the international community respond? With a holistic rereading of Chinese longue durée history, Fei-Ling Wang provides a simple but powerful framework for understanding the nature of persistent and rising Chinese power and its implications for the current global order. He argues that the Chinese ideation and tradition of political governance and world order—the China Order—is based on an imperial state of Confucian-Legalism as historically exemplified by the Qin-Han polity. Claiming a Mandate of Heaven to unify and govern the whole known world or tianxia (all under heaven), the China Order dominated Eastern Eurasia as a world empire for more than two millennia, until the late nineteenth century. Since 1949, the People's Republic of China has been a reincarnated Qin-Han polity without the traditional China Order, finding itself stuck in the endless struggle against the current world order and the ever-changing Chinese society for its regime survival and security. Wang also offers new discoveries and assessments about the true golden eras of Chinese civilization, explains the great East-West divergence between China and Europe, and analyzes the China Dream that drives much of current Chinese foreign policy.

Genres: China, History, Politics, Nonfiction, Social Science

344 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 1, 2017

Reviews

[Seeker · Rating 5 out of 5]

I highly recommend this erudite book to the FT book cafe members. It could be read as a lucid and concise history of China from Qin to the present day. But it is history viewed from a refreshing angle that is very much unlike the orthodox / traditional view. It explained how the China Order ideology (which is a skillful but hypocritical combination of Confucianism and Machiavellian Legalism) was formed and how it ruled the trajectory of Chinese history in the past two and a half millennium. You will be surprised to learn that present day Chinese Communist propaganda under Xi Jin Ping is but the China Order couched in modern language decorated with some Marxist terms.

The chapter on Song Dynasty is the most important one as Song’s achievements and uniqueness starkly bring out the evils of the China Order. Song is the most underrated dynasty and is ignored or distorted for ideological reasons. Yet based on solid historical evidence, including learning from Joseph Needham, the author was able to convincingly bring out the strong message that ”China”, or rather the majority of the human beings living in that geographical area, would be happiest when its rulers were not obsessed with ”National (Han) Revival”, ”territorial integrity”, global hegemony and the power concentration required to achieve these (often unachievable and extremely costly) goals.

[D · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book destroys the belief of "China good, CCP bad", CCP is in reality yet another Chinese dynasty, following the Qin Han order that has been running deep in Chinese culture since thousands of years ago...

No textbooks in China would tell you Song Dynasty was good, this book suggests otherwise.

[Shawn Su · Rating 5 out of 5]

Extremely enlightening. As an ethic Han Chinese who grew up in China I have always hated the oppressing, collectivist and authoritarian/totalitarian culture and wondered why it is the way it is. This book gives me the most persuasive and logical explanation through detailed analysis of authentic history, and it totally dismisses the last shred of false hope that I hold for the country to ever become a modern westernised democratic and liveable country. I finally see what China for what it is and what it has always been - one of the most longest surviving and cruel totalitarian power in human history that will never change. As much as I would like to dishing out blame, I have to grudgingly admit it's nobody's fault. It's all geography - it makes Europe the way it is, it makes China the way it is. I'm glad the west is finally waking up to China's true colour and many are decidedly withdrawing from doing business or associating with the country. The ones who don't will have their reckoning coming soon or later and they will have no one to blame but themselves.

[Henry · Rating 4 out of 5]

7/10

[Florence Loh]

本書適合給西方親中人士掃盲，看看生動的1984。

[Jack_rain · Rating 5 out of 5]

這本書告訴我們秦漢史整體的中華秩序必然會崩潰，分裂即便在古代本來就是個常態，無需期待。

[Tianxiao Zhang · Rating 5 out of 5]

作为学术作品，总体是基于事实的。至于观点看起来过于激进，主要原因在于整体的社会环境过于保守。在今天的中国，讨论“事实”也是不可接受的，因为事实本身已经足够令人震撼，无需其他加工。

[Ryo · Rating 5 out of 5]

关键词西发利亚即威斯特伐利亚体系；
“rule by law” vs “rule of law”，换“天命”为“民命”；
赞春秋战国宋辽金晚清ROC，贬秦汉唐明PRC（以消耗人民生命和人权的赤字花费而换取竞争力）