ASIAN 2296 - [From Slow Boats to CEOs?: The Chinese of Southeast Asia]

@ (CA-AS)

Fall. 4 credits.

Next offered 2013-2014.

L. Paterson.

From a Thai king’s pamphlet on the “Jews of the East,” to the 1998 anti-Chinese riots in Indonesia, the ethnic Chinese of Southeast Asia have long been positioned as a privileged and wealthy elite who wield disproportionate power and influence. But what lies behind these stereotypes? Beginning with the history of Chinese migration to Southeast Asia, this interdisciplinary course will examine the changing relationship between China and its Southeast Asian sojourners, as well as Chinese cultural and social impact in the region. Through a series of case studies, the course will interrogate issues of how Chinese ethnicity is constructed within this transnational Chinese Diaspora, and how it impacts contemporary issues in Southeast Asia. Countries emphasized will include the city-state of Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, and Burma. (SC)