Before the Cultural Revolution

FromChina,withDisdain:NewTrendsintheStudyofChinaAuthor(s):HarryHardingSource:AsianSurvey,Vol.22,No.10(Oct.,1982),pp.934-958Publishedby:UniversityofCaliforniaPressStableURL::12/04/201110:07YouruseoftheJSTORarchiveindicatesyouracceptanceofJSTOR'sTermsandConditionsofUse,availableat.://=ucal..EachcopyofanypartofaJSTORtransmissionmustcontainthesamecopyrightnoticethatappearsonthescreenorprintedpageofsuchtransmission.JSTORisanot-for-profitservicethathelpsscholars,researchers,andstudentsdiscover,use,andbuilduponawiderangeofcontentinatrusteddigitalarchive.Weuseinformationtechnologyandtoolstoincreaseproductivityandfacilitatenewformsofscholarship.FormoreinformationaboutJSTOR,[e-mail]essiscollaboratingwithJSTORtodigitize,preserveandextendaccesstoAsianSurvey.:NEWTRENDSINTHESTUDYOFCHINAHarryHarding*It'stimetogetbeyondtheAmericaninfatuationwiththe'new'China.-advertisementforRichardBernstein,FromtheCenteroftheEarth:TheSearchfortheTruthAboutChina(Little,Brown),inNewYorkTimesBookReview,April25,1982.WEAMERICANSalwaysseemtobebusyclearingupmisconceptionsaboutChina.Inourattempttogetbeyondonesetofmis-understandings,however,weoftencreatenewonestotaketheirplace.Wesubstitutetoday'struthforyesterday'smyth,onlytodiscoverthattoday'srealitybecomestomorrow'sillusion.ThisiswhyAmericanat-titudestowardsChinahaveundergonetheregularcyclesofromanticismandcynicism,ofidealizationanddisdain,thatweresowelldescribedtwenty-fiveyearsagoinHaroldIsaacs'classic,ScratchesonOurMinds.'Overthepasttenyears,AmericanattitudestowardsChinahaveex-periencedanotherswingoftheperceptualpendulum.Theidealisticrhet-oricoftheCulturalRevolution,togetherwiththedramaticimprovementinSino-Americanrelations,createdaperiodofpronouncedfascinationwithChinathatlastedthroughmostofthe1970s.TheMaoistvisionofegalitarianism,populism,andselflessnessseemedattractivetomanyAmericans.Aftertwentyyearsofhostility,thepossibilityofrenewingafriendlyrelationshipwithaquarterofmankindappealedtostillmore.A*ThisisarevisedversionofapaperpresentedattheEleventhSino-AmericanCon-ferenceonMainlandChina,heldinTaipeiinJune1982.Iamgratefultothepartici-pantsintheconferencefortheirconstructivesuggestions.934?1982byTheRegentsoftheUniversityofCalifornia0004-4687/82/100934+25$00.50NEWTRENDSINTHESTUDYOFCHINA935Chinafeveror,asLucianPyedescribedit,akindofMarcoPolo-itis2-swepttheUnitedStates.Itssymptomswerenotonlytheenrap-turedaccountsoflifeinthePRCbytheearlyAmericanvisitors,butalsothetidalwaveofChinoiseriethatdelugedeverythingfromartmuseumstohairsalons,andfrominteriordesigntohighcouture.Today,intheearly1980s,Chinaisnottheragethatitwasadecadeago.OurmuseumsnowfeatureexhibitionsofAlexandertheGreatratherthanChinShiHuang;wedrawourfashioninspirationfromthepatternsandcolorsofourownSouthwestratherthanfromMaojacketsandman-darincollars;andweworrymoreaboutcrisesintheMiddleEast,Eu-rope,andtheSouthAtlanticthanaboutourrelationswithChina.Alecturebythelatestbeen-tonolongerdrawsthecrowditoncedid,andenrollmentsinmanycollegecoursesonChinahavefallenprecipitously.AswerecoverfromourChinafever,ourearlieridealizationofthePRCisgivingwaytosomethingmorecynical.AnadvertisementintheNewYorkTimesBookReviewforthememoirsofthefirstTime-LifecorrespondentinBeijingoffersusChinawithoutillusions.ItpromisesthatthebookwillgetbeyondtheAmericaninfatuationwiththe'new'China-pastthecarefullycultivatedimagesoftheTravelServicetours,thespellboundrhapsodiesofthereturnedpilgrimsinitssearchforthetruthaboutChina.3ThenewimageofChinathatisnowemergingisstatedmostsuccinctlybythetitlegiventoanarticleinHarper'sbyanAmericanwhorecentlyreturnedfromayearteachingEnglishinZheng-zhou:ChinaStinks.4ThisreassessmentofChinais,onthewhole,awelcomephe-nomenon.ManyAmericansareindeedbeginningtomovebeyondideal-izationtogainamoredispassionateandobjectiveunderstandingofthePRC.AndyetthereissomereasonforconcernthatthereassessmentmayyieldarevisedimageofChinathatis,initsownway,nearlyasone-sided,extreme,anddistortedastheoneithasreplaced.TenyearsagoAmericantravelerswenttoChinawithlove.5Now,theyreturnfromChinawithdisdain.AndthismayproducenotahealthyrealismaboutChina,butratheradebilitatingcontempt.Ifso,ourreevaluationofChinamaysimplysetthestageforanotherroundofinfatuationandeu-phoriaadecadehence,againinthenameofclearingupmisunderstand-ingsaboutChina.ChangingImagesofChinaAmericanimagesofChinainthe1970saretobefoundinawiderangeofliterature,fromessaysintheNewYorkTimestoarticlesinChinaQuarterly,andfromscholarlyvolumespublishedbyacademicpressestocom