East Asia Rising: Beyond the American Century? (L2074AID)

30 credits, Level 6

Autumn teaching

What explains the extraordinary economic rise of East Asia since the mid-20th century? How has the East Asian experience of development been shaped by broader processes of geopolitical contestation? What are the implications of the rise of China for the region and beyond, and to what extent is the “American century” coming to an end?

In this module, you will gain a deep understanding of the rise of East Asia, from the divergent legacies of European and Japanese imperialism, the role of Cold War contestation and post-war US hegemony, and how China’s more recent rise is reshaping the region and prospects for global development more broadly.
Within this historical context, you’ll examine various theoretical and analytical approaches to understanding the East Asian political economy. You will explore a number of cutting-edge issues such as:

• global production networks and potential delinking
• labour-capital relations
• financial crises and crisis management
• the Belt and Road Initiative
• the so-called “New Cold War.”

Contact hours and workload

This module is approximately 300 hours of work. This breaks down into about 30 hours of contact time and about 270 hours of independent study. The University may make minor variations to the contact hours for operational reasons, including timetabling requirements.

We regularly review our modules to incorporate student feedback, staff expertise, as well as the latest research and teaching methodology. We’re planning to run these modules in the academic year 2024/25. However, there may be changes to these modules in response to feedback, staff availability, student demand or updates to our curriculum.

We’ll make sure to let you know of any material changes to modules at the earliest opportunity.