Fall/Winter Timetable

SII199H1S L0352

First-Year Seminar

The China Challenge

Themes

This course is open only to newly admitted first year students.
The 199Y seminars do not substitute for POL101Y1. Also, the 199Y seminars do not count toward the requirements of any of the Political Science programs.

China's meteoric rise to great power status has triggered an intense international debate over its global implications. While many analyst see Beijing’s rise as posing a threat to global political and economic stability, Chinese leaders have argued forcefully that China’s efforts to regain its historic preeminence will result in a ‘win-win” outcome for all states. This course will assess the merits of these contending positions through an historical examination of China’s 20th century renaissance. The course will begin by tracing the long period of imperial decline in the 19th century, culminating in China’s revolutionary rebirth as a Marxist state in 1949. A major focus will be on the Mao-era legacy of revolutionary diplomacy and the foreign policy consequences of its later transformation into a market-authoritarian powerhouse. The course will end with an assessment of the implications for Canada and the international community of China’s expanding power and influence.