China's increasingly prominent role in the world has attracted a wide range of attention, from adulation to anxiety to war-mongering. Yet much of that attention has treated China as a unitary actor. This perspective, though important, is not sufficient on its own. To understand China's presence in the world, it is essential to consider its domestic politics, from the past to the present.
In this module, we will discuss the domestic politics of China together. Undeniably, we cannot cover everything about the country within ten weeks. To paint the majorpicture, our discussion is centred on authoritarian resilience: how has the Chinese Communist Party sustained one of the world's most enduring authoritarian regimes?
By discussing this topic, we will think about three related questions. First, administratively, how does the party-state function? Second, economically, how does China produce economic growth and innovation, and what risks does it now carry? Third, socially, how have ordinary Chinese people experienced these political and economic changes, and why have their responses differed so widely?
In the last week, we will look into the case of COVID-19 governance in China, thinking about how our knowledge about China plays out in this particular event.
