ANSO 225(F) Modern Chinese Society*
China occupies an important position in the American imagination, as evidenced by the media attention paid to the Tiananmen uprising and to President Clinton's recent visits. Despite this fascination, there is also ambivalence. Is China the New Enemy, an Evil Empire of political repression? Or is it the source of hope, an alternative path of modernization that will bypass America's pitfalls? This course offers an introductory overview of social, economic, political, and cultural life in contemporary China, focusing especially on how macro-level social changes have affected the everyday lives of ordinary people. We will examine life in both urban and rural China at the height of Maoist socialism and after Deng Xiaoping's market reforms. Requirements: midterm, final, and one paper. Open to first-year students.