The Great Encounter of China and the West, 1500-1800

by Mungello, D. E.

• ISBN13: 9781442219762
• ISBN10: 1442219769
• Edition: 4th
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2012-11-02
• Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers

Summary

For the Chinese, the drive toward growing political and economic power are part of an ongoing effort to restore China's past greatness and remove the lingering memories of history's humiliations. This widely praised book explores the 15001800 period before China's decline, when the country was widely viewed as a leading world culture and power. Europe, by contrast, was in the early stages of emerging from provincial to international status while the United States was still an uncharted wilderness. D. E. Mungello argues that this earlier era, ironically, may contain more relevance for today than the more recent past. This fully revised fourth edition retains the clear and concise quality of its predecessors, while drawing on a wealth of new research on Sino-Western history and the increasing contributions of Chinese historians. Drawing on the author's decades of research and teaching, this compelling book illustrates the vital importance of history to readers trying to understand China's renewed rise.

Author Biography

D. E. Mungello is professor of history at Baylor University.

Table of Contents

Maps
Missionary and Trade Routes between Europe and China (1500-1800)	p. vii
China (1500-1800)	p. viii
List of Illustrations	p. ix
Preface	p. xi
Historical Overview	p. 1
China's Return to Greatness	p. 1
Sinocentrism	p. 3
Foreign Trade	p. 5
Mutual Influence between China and the West	p. 8
Chinese Acceptance of Western Culture and Christianity	p. 15
Jesuit Accommodation	p. 15
Jesuit Conversions of the Literati	p. 19
Christianity as a Subversive Sect	p. 24
Chinese Rites Controversy from the Chinese Perspective	p. 27
The Closing of Chinese Minds (ca. 1644)	p. 31
Chinese Reaction to European Technology and Art	p. 39
Chinese Rejection of Western Culture and Christianity	p. 53
The Basis of Anti-Christian Feeling in China	p. 53
Chinese Anti-Christian Movements	p. 61
European Art at the Chinese Court	p. 67
European Art among the Chinese Literati-Painters	p. 72
The Grand Imperial Garden Yuanming Yuan	p. 80
European Acceptance of Chinese Culture and Confucianism	p. 91
Early Chinese Visitors to Europe	p. 91
Chinese Rites Controversy from the European Perspective	p. 95
The Proto-Sinologists	p. 98
China Popularizers in Europe	p. 104
Leibniz, Bouvet, and Figurism	p. 108
The European View of the Literati Tradition: Confucianism versus Neo-Confucianism	p. 114
Influence of Chinese Art upon European Artists	p. 116
European Rejection of Chinese Culture and Confucianism	p. 123
Father Ripa's Boys	p. 123
The Sad Story of Lucio Wu	p. 129
The Enlightenment's Idealization of China's Morality and Political System	p. 135
Enlightenment Sinophilia and Sinophobia	p. 138
How the Chinese Changed from White to Yellow	p. 141
Female Infanticide	p. 144
The British Embassy to Beijing (1792-1794)	p. 150
The Dutch Embassy to Beijing (1794-1795)	p. 157
Conclusion	p. 159
Index	p. 165
About the Author	p. 177
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