The West as the Other : A Genealogy of Chinese Occidentalism
Wang, Mingming. The West as the other : a genealogy of Chinese occidentalism. Hong Kong : The Chinese university Press, 2014. XV-381 p. (Coll. “Academic monograph on anthropology”). ISBN: 978-962-996-489-4.
Long before the Europeans reached the east, the ancient Chinese had advanced their perspectives of the west. In this groundbreaking book, Wang explores a fascinating perspective of the Other. He locates the Other in the alternating directionologies of classical and imperial China, leading the reader into a long history of Chinese geo-cosmologies and world-scapes. In his analysis, Wang also delves into the historical records of Chinese “world activities,” or the journeys from being the Central Kingdom to reaching to the “outer regions,” separating the construction of illusory from realistic geographies while drawing attention to their interconnected natures. Wang challenges an extensive number of critical studies of Orientalist narratives (chiefly including Edward Said’s Orientalism), and reframes such studies from the directionological perspectives of an “Oriental” civilization. He challenges the assumption that the Other must be understood in the sense that has been explained in general anthropology, crucially underlining the European foundations that have shaped its traditional interpretations.
Plus d’informations sur le site de Chinese University Press (sommaire, introduction)
- Ouvrage disponible à la bibliothèque du CECMC
- Wang Mingming 王铭铭 est anthropologue, professeur à l’université de Pékin. Il est également rédacteur en chef de la revue 中国人类学评论 = Chinese Review of Anthropology, publiée à Pékin depuis 2007.
Page personnelle de Wang Mingming sur le site de l’université de Pékin (en chinois)
Compte rendu
- David Buck. Review of Wang, Mingming, The West as the Other: A Genealogy of Chinese Occidentalism. H-Asia, H-Net Reviews. August, 2014. URL: http://www.h-net.org/reviews/showrev.php?id=41772
OpenEdition vous propose de citer ce billet de la manière suivante :
Monique Abud (6 décembre 2014). The West as the Other : A Genealogy of Chinese Occidentalism. Carnets du Centre Chine (CNRS/EHESS). Consulté le 16 novembre 2025 à l’adresse https://doi.org/10.58079/mey3

Long before the Europeans reached the east, the ancient Chinese had advanced their perspectives of the west. In this groundbreaking book, Wang explores a fascinating perspective of the Other. He locates the Other in the alternating directionologies of classical and imperial China, leading the reader into a long history of Chinese geo-cosmologies and world-scapes. In his analysis, Wang also delves into the historical records of Chinese “world activities,” or the journeys from being the Central Kingdom to reaching to the “outer regions,” separating the construction of illusory from realistic geographies while drawing attention to their interconnected natures. Wang challenges an extensive number of critical studies of Orientalist narratives (chiefly including Edward Said’s Orientalism), and reframes such studies from the directionological perspectives of an “Oriental” civilization. He challenges the assumption that the Other must be understood in the sense that has been explained in general anthropology, crucially underlining the European foundations that have shaped its traditional interpretations.