The Chan's Great Continent: China in Western Minds

Nonfiction, History, Asian, China
Cover of the book The Chan's Great Continent: China in Western Minds by Jonathan D. Spence, W. W. Norton & Company
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Jonathan D. Spence ISBN: 9780393247701
Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company Publication: October 17, 1999
Imprint: W. W. Norton & Company Language: English
Author: Jonathan D. Spence
ISBN: 9780393247701
Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
Publication: October 17, 1999
Imprint: W. W. Norton & Company
Language: English

"Like everything else written by Jonathan Spence, The Chan's Great Continent is an absolute must-read for anyone interested in China. Spence is one of the greatest Sinologists of our time, and his work is both authoritative and highly readable." —Los Angeles Times Book Review

China has transfixed the West since the earliest contacts between these civilizations. With his characteristic elegance and insight, Jonathan Spence explores how the West has understood China over seven centuries. Ranging from Marco Polo's own depiction of China and the mighty Khan, Kublai, in the 1270s to the China sightings of three twentieth-century writers of acknowledged genius-Kafka, Borges, and Calvino-Spence conveys Western thought on China through a remarkable array of expression. Peopling Spence's account are Iberian adventurers, Enlightenment thinkers, spinners of the dreamy cult of Chinoiserie, and American observers such as Bret Harte, Mark Twain, Ezra Pound, and Eugene O'Neill. Taken together, these China sightings tell us as much about the self-image of the West as about China. "Wonderful. . . . Spence brilliantly demonstrates [how] generation after generation of Westerners [have] asked themselves, 'What is it . . . that held this astonishing, diverse, and immensely populous land together?' "--New York Times Book Review

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

"Like everything else written by Jonathan Spence, The Chan's Great Continent is an absolute must-read for anyone interested in China. Spence is one of the greatest Sinologists of our time, and his work is both authoritative and highly readable." —Los Angeles Times Book Review

China has transfixed the West since the earliest contacts between these civilizations. With his characteristic elegance and insight, Jonathan Spence explores how the West has understood China over seven centuries. Ranging from Marco Polo's own depiction of China and the mighty Khan, Kublai, in the 1270s to the China sightings of three twentieth-century writers of acknowledged genius-Kafka, Borges, and Calvino-Spence conveys Western thought on China through a remarkable array of expression. Peopling Spence's account are Iberian adventurers, Enlightenment thinkers, spinners of the dreamy cult of Chinoiserie, and American observers such as Bret Harte, Mark Twain, Ezra Pound, and Eugene O'Neill. Taken together, these China sightings tell us as much about the self-image of the West as about China. "Wonderful. . . . Spence brilliantly demonstrates [how] generation after generation of Westerners [have] asked themselves, 'What is it . . . that held this astonishing, diverse, and immensely populous land together?' "--New York Times Book Review

More books from W. W. Norton & Company

Cover of the book Reprobates: The Cavaliers of the English Civil War by Jonathan D. Spence
Cover of the book How Poems Get Made by Jonathan D. Spence
Cover of the book Poor George: A Novel by Jonathan D. Spence
Cover of the book The Future of Freedom: Illiberal Democracy at Home and Abroad (Revised Edition) by Jonathan D. Spence
Cover of the book Neurodevelopmental Disorders: A Definitive Guide for Educators by Jonathan D. Spence
Cover of the book The Pawnbroker's Daughter: A Memoir by Jonathan D. Spence
Cover of the book Histories of the Hanged: The Dirty War in Kenya and the End of Empire by Jonathan D. Spence
Cover of the book Lines of Defense: Poems by Jonathan D. Spence
Cover of the book Somewhere Towards the End: A Memoir by Jonathan D. Spence
Cover of the book Pinpoint: How GPS is Changing Technology, Culture, and Our Minds by Jonathan D. Spence
Cover of the book Poetry of Witness: The Tradition in English, 1500-2001 by Jonathan D. Spence
Cover of the book The Elegant Universe: Superstrings, Hidden Dimensions, and the Quest for the Ultimate Theory by Jonathan D. Spence
Cover of the book Miscreants: Poems by Jonathan D. Spence
Cover of the book Dear Mrs. Lindbergh: A Novel by Jonathan D. Spence
Cover of the book Honey and Junk: Poems by Jonathan D. Spence
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy