CHUS #5. Multiple Shifts of 20th-Century China
Saturday, January 4, 2025: 3:30 PM-5:00 PM
New York Hilton, East Room
Session Organizer: Patrick Fuliang Shan, Grand Valley State University
Chair(s):
Aihua Zhang, Gardner–Webb University
Papers:
Admiral Liu Huaqing: China’s Mahan and the New Cold War
Xiaobing Li, University of Central Oklahoma
Navigating Controversy: Changing Perceptions of the Sanmenxia Dam in China
Xiaojia Hou, San José State University
Mao and Law in China: The Shaping of Mao’s Early Legal Consciousness
Qiang Fang, University of Minnesota Duluth
The Chinese Pursuit of Republicanism: State-Building, Postimperial Election, and the Creation of Congress, 1911–13
Patrick Fuliang Shan, Grand Valley State University
Comment: Danke Li, Fairfield University
Panel Description
No other century, perhaps, has undergone more dramatical changes than the twentieth century. During the one hundred years, China has encountered significant shifts in social, political, military, environment, and other realms. The four presenters of this panel will explore China’s multiple shifts from empire to republic, from tradition to modernity, and from the old convention to the new culture. More importantly, the four presenters offer their unique interpretation of those changes. The organization of the first nationally elected congress after the collapse of the last dynasty and the establishment of the first republic will be explored. Mao Zedong’s judicial thought will be discussed. A Chinese admiral’s strategies for building a modernized navy will be surveyed. The Chinese building of dams, in particular, the one at Sanmenxia, will be highlighted. Overall, this panel serves as an important forum to offer the four presenters’ recent research and their scholarly investigations of those topics concerning the century we just left behind.
Paper Abstracts
Admiral Liu Huaqing: China’s Mahan and the New Cold War
Xiaobing Li, University of Central Oklahoma
After assuming the PLAN’s command in 1982, Liu emphasized China’s overseas trade, maritime interests, and a strong naval force. He was ranked an admiral in 1988 and began to serve as Deputy Secretary General and Vice Chairman of the CMC. He became one of the seven members on the Politburo’s Standing Committee and the country’s third top leader until 1998. Jiang Zemin endorsed Liu’s perception of China’s sea power, naval war readiness, and sovereignty over the disputed islands in the East and South China Seas. As a result, the PLA shifted from traditional ground war preparation to a new naval warfare in blue waters. Xi Jinping called for more efforts to promote his “red tradition” and learn more from Liu. What was his “red DNA”? Why did he become the “father of modern China navy” for the 21st century? How much do his theories, doctrines, and strategy impact the PLA Navy today? Based on Chinese sources, this research paper puts the admiral in the context of the civil war, Cold War, political struggle, and military reforms and tries to answer these questions.
Navigating Controversy: Changing Perceptions of the Sanmenxia Dam in China
Xiaojia Hou, San José State University
In the 1950s, the Chinese Communist Party launched the construction of the Sanmenxia Dam, the first modern hydroelectric infrastructure on the Yellow River. Even before its commencement, the project was filled with controversy. Prior to its completion, the dam had already become a source of trouble, necessitating continuous modifications. Over subsequent decades, perceptions of the dam varied significantly among different groups. This essay examines evolving narratives surrounding the Sanmenxia Dam, exploring how the Party adapted the dam’s intended functions to justify multiple modifications. It also investigates the portrayal of the dam in official Chinese media. Furthermore, this essay studies the perspectives of Chinese hydro specialists as documented in academic publications, and the strategies adopted by neighboring local governments to address the impacts of the dam. By utilizing the Sanmenxia Dam as a case study, this essay underscores how differing perspectives have influenced the historiography of infrastructure on the Yellow River.
Mao and Law in China: The Shaping of Mao’s Early Legal Consciousness
Qiang Fang, University of Minnesota Duluth
Former Chinese Communist leader Mao Zedong once said that he did not care about law. Throughout his rule from the 1930s to his death in 1976, Mao had frequently ignored law in many of his political campaigns driven by “continuous revolution.” Some of the worst “lawless” periods under Mao were in the Anti-rightist Movement and the Cultural Revolution during which millions of people had been arbitrarily attacked, tortured, imprisoned, or killed without undergoing formal legal proceedings. But when he was young, Mao ostensibly demonstrated strong belief in law and order, and he supported a Hunan governor who employed stringent laws in maintaining order. How did Mao view law when he was a youth? Why and how did he make such a big change from being a law advocate to a law nihilist? To what extent was Mao’s tectonic shift in his belief in law affected by Marxism, Leninism, and Stalinism? Many scholars around the world have authored hundreds of books and articles on Mao. But none of them has offered an objective and in-depth analysis on the dramatic shift and shaping of Mao’s attitude on law prior to the split between the CCP and the GMD in 1927. Drawing Mao’s personal writings plus archives and the memoirs of numerous Communist and Republican officials, this paper seeks to examine the political, ideological, and legal dynamics behind Mao’s shift of his views on law during a volatile, fragmented, and war-torn period.
The Chinese Pursuit of Republicanism: State-building, Post-imperial election, and the Creation of Congress, 1911-1913
Patrick Fuliang Shan, Grand Valley State University
The 1911 Revolution resulted in the abdication of the imperial household of the Qing Dynasty. Subsequently, the millennial dynastic system ruled by the royal family was terminated. The elated Chinese endeavored to build a republic by pursuing republicanism. They held a nation-wide election in late 1912 and early 1913, which resulted in a creation of the first national assembly, historically known as the Old Congress. The organization of such an elected legislature was a stunning breakthrough in the long Chinese civilization. In this essay, the post-imperial situation will be investigated, the first nation-wide election will be scrutinized, and more importantly, the national assembly, the Old Congress, will be examined. Through this particular analysis, the complicated situation in the transition from empire to republic will be unblemished.
