NTU Course
Overview

A History of the United State and China

Offered in 114-1

  • Serial Number

    10528

  • Course Number

    Hist5434

  • Course Identifier

    123 U9740

  • No Class

  • 3 Credits

  • Elective

    GRADUATE INSTITUTE OF HISTORY

      Elective

    • GRADUATE INSTITUTE OF HISTORY

  • JEREMY MURRAY
  • Mon 3, 4, 5

  • 綜302

  • Type 2

  • 30 Student Quota

    NTU 30

  • No Specialization Program

  • English
  • NTU COOL
  • Core Capabilities and Curriculum Planning
  • Notes

    The course is conducted in English。

  • Limits on Course Adding / Dropping

    • Restriction: juniors and beyond

  • NTU Enrollment Status

    Enrolled
    0/30
    Other Depts
    0/0
    Remaining
    0
    Registered
    0
  • Course Description
    This course will be a shared exploration of the history of relations between the United States and China. Courses based on the history of two countries are uncommon due to the nature of our discipline, but they can be rewarding and provide deeper insights than just an old-fashioned diplomatic or military history. We will work to establish a foundational understanding of these histories using secondary and primary sources, and then you will conduct your own research projects on a topic of your choice. We will cover the history of relations between the United States and China from the 1770s to the present. We will discuss foreign relations from before this period as well, but most of the course material will focus from the 1770s to the present, starting with the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), through the Republican period (1911-1949), and through the current era (1949-present). We will use the Dong Wang textbook noted below to establish the fundamental trends, events, and major figures within this relationship, and then the Sulmaan Khan Taiwan book. We will incorporate a collection of primary sources and other readings available online either through open websites, or ones that I will scan and share. We will also use some non-traditional materials like art, music, new media, and films, all free and shared by me. In addition to understanding the fundamental political, social, and economic relations between the US and China, cultural history will also be an important facet of the class. Thus one of the main themes of the course will be examining dominant national mythologies of the United States and China, and how these have developed since the respective nations’ beginnings, including mythologies in popular culture and more official national mythologies. The course will examine the layers of national narratives in different periods both in terms of how the two powers perceived and depicted themselves, and how they perceived and depicted each other. This theme will conclude with an exploration of the most recent national narratives, incorporating popular and official voices in Beijing and Taipei, Hollywood and Washington, and more. The course will begin with the establishment of major trends, events, and individuals in this shared history, and this will include online and in-class reading discussions, reading reaction posts, and a scaffolded research project. By scaffolded, I mean that we will break a major research project into stages, so that we move through planning, research, and writing in stages together, and share our work as we develop our projects. Find the Google Doc syllabus at this link: https://docs.google.com/document/d/10oFuzJubz_RiQWqHWZMlHNJzrgn3DtF8/edit
  • Course Objective
    Using two texts written by scholars of Chinese and American history, plus primary sources, and a wide and creative array of non-traditional historical sources (material culture, museum exhibits, films, music, poetry, and more), this course will guide students in a shared exploration of the history of Chinese-US relations. It will consider historical research methods and critical readings of sources, while we cover the rudiments of the history of US-China relations.
  • Course Requirement
    參見評量方式 a. Consistent Class Participation b. Leading One Discussion Session (reading presentation) c. 7 Short Reading Reaction Posts (250+ words each) d. Scaffolded Research Project Culminating in Final Paper and Presentation Details on all of this are here in the syllabus and on our NTU COOL page. For details see below along with grading plans.
  • Expected weekly study hours before and/or after class
    5-10
  • Office Hour
    Mon09:00 - 10:00
    This will be on a Google Meet link shared with the class.
  • Designated Reading
    Required: Main Text: Wang, Dong, The United States and China: A History from the Eighteenth Century to the Present. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield, Second Edition, 2021). Required: Khan, Sulmaan Wasif. The Struggle for Taiwan: A History of America, China, and the Island Caught Between. First edition. New York: Basic Books, 2024.
  • References
    Required: Main Text: Wang, Dong, The United States and China: A History from the Eighteenth Century to the Present. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield, Second Edition, 2021). Required: Khan, Sulmaan Wasif. The Struggle for Taiwan: A History of America, China, and the Island Caught Between. First edition. New York: Basic Books, 2024. Recent scholarly articles will also be available and shared for free. Primary sources will be shared and available to all students for free. From the US side, some primary sources will include this page: The Office of the Historian Foreign Relations of the US Other primary sources and materials will be shared through our NTU COOL Some suggested readings, a sample of some further secondary reading that may be of interest. I will add more materials to this list and I will help you compile lists of secondary sources like these and primary sources for your research projects. Again, these below titles are just a few titles that reflect an English-language scholarly list of works on US-China relations and history. Arkush, R. David, and Leo O. Lee, Land Without Ghosts: Chinese Impressions of America from the Mid-Nineteenth Century to the Present. UC Press, 1993. Brown, Kerry. Why Taiwan Matters: A Short History of a Small Island That Will Dictate Our Future. St. Martin’s: 2025. Hass, Ryan, et al. US-Taiwan Relations: Will China’s Challenge Lead to a Crisis? Brookings, 2023. Lampton, David M. Living U.S.-China Relations: From Cold War to Cold War. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield, 2024. Li, Hongshan. Fighting on the Cultural Front : U.S.-China Relations in the Cold War. Columbia University Press, 2024. Mitter, Rana. China’s Good War: How World War II Is Shaping a New Nationalism. Harvard University Press, 2020. Mitter, Rana. Forgotten Ally: China’s World War II, 1937-1945. Houghton Mifflin, 2013. Rigger, Shelley. The Tiger Leading the Dragon: How Taiwan Propelled China’s Economic Rise. Rowman & Littlefield, 2021. Rigger, Shelley. Why Taiwan Matters: Small Island, Global Powerhouse. Rowman & Littlefield, 2013.
  • Grading
    10%

    Overall Participation

    This will include participation in small-group discussions and full class discussion.

    5%

    Leading 1 Session

    This will include providing discussion prompts and leading the class in one discussion session. Depending on enrollment, this may be done in a collaboration of more than one student per session. You can make this session your own based on how you would like to guide the session, but you should demonstrate mastery of the assigned reading for that day in the way that you lead the class. You might provide a set of broad topics to prompt discussion, or you could provide some questions to ask students to weigh in on. You might want to email me the list of topics or questions, or run any plans for the session by me in advance, but this is not required. We will discuss options on this, and each student will sign up to lead a session early in the term.

    35%

    7 Reading Reactions

    These will be online reading reactions. The online discussion posts will be due before the start of class. These are intended to be frequent, lower-stakes assignments that will not make or break your grade, but will culminate in a major portion of your grade. They are intended to ensure your steady participation in the class completion of the required readings. They will be worth 5 points each and will add up to 35%. Details on what I expect in these reading reactions will be in the NTU COOL assignments. In brief, I hope that you can select 3 points from the required readings that you find most urgent, introduce them, and explain why they are most important to you in at least 250 words total. I am most interested in what you think, so as you show mastery of the ideas and the text, also show why these ideas are so important to you that you pulled them out of the reading.

    5%

    Prospectus

    This should be a tentative plan. The abstract should be mostly questions. The outline can be a rough breakdown of 3 to 5 main sections. The bibliography should include a list of primary and secondary sources, and should have a line or two of your notes on how you might use the source. I’ll give more details on this in the NTU COOL assignment.

    5%

    Informal Topic Presentation

    This is your chance to articulate, informally and in class, what you hope to do with the paper. Note some things that you think might be a challenge, and things that you think might work well, and why. These will be done live in class, and should only be 2 or 3 minutes per student, and there will also be an opportunity for students and for me to pose constructive questions.

    10%

    First Draft

    This can and probably should be very messy. You can have lots of notes and remnants of the prospectus, but the draft should show your writing has begun, you’ve started adding quotes and citations from a range of sources. Seven-page minimum is based on 12-point Times New Roman font, double-spaced with one-inch margins on all four sides.

    5%

    Informal First Draft Presentation

    Like the topic presentation, this should just be 2 or 3 minutes. It will be a progress report from your perspective, and it’s your chance to introduce some things that have been working well and things that have been a challenge for you so far. Students and I may again ask constructive questions, and presenters can specifically invite input from their classmates on certain topics.

    15%

    Second Draft

    This should have a clear argument, supported by evidence. The writing should be clear, and the structure of the paper should be clear and easy to follow. You should show that you have some understanding of the secondary scholarship of your topic, and then you should bring to bear some primary research to support your argument. We will discuss this much more in class.

    10%

    Short Presentation With Slides

    This will be either recorded and shared, or delivered live in front of the class (your choice). You should use images to illustrate your points and make your argument in visual as well as verbal forms. Note that the 3-minute minimum and 5-minute maximum are important to adhere to. I recommend practicing this to make sure that you stick to these timing guidelines. You can just present one aspect of your paper, you can present all aspects, you can extrapolate what you might do in future work, or anything else along these lines, but be clear which of these approaches you’re taking in your presentation.

    1. NTU has not set an upper limit on the percentage of A+ grades.
    2. NTU uses a letter grade system for assessment. The grade percentage ranges and the single-subject grade conversion table in the NATIONAL TAIWAN UNIVERSITY Regulations Governing Academic Grading are for reference only. Instructors may adjust the percentage ranges according to the grade definitions. For more information, see the Assessment for Learning Section。
  • Adjustment methods for students
    Adjustment MethodDescription
    A2

    以錄影輔助

    Assisted by video

    A3

    提供學生彈性出席課程方式

    Provide students with flexible ways of attending courses

    B1

    延長作業繳交期限

    Extension of the deadline for submitting assignments

    B2

    書面報告取代口頭報告

    Written report replaces oral report

    B3

    口頭報告取代書面報告

    Oral report replaces written report

    B4

    個人報告取代團體報告

    Individual presentation replace group presentation

    B5

    團體報告取代個人報告

    Group report replace Personal report

    B6

    學生與授課老師協議改以其他形式呈現

    Mutual agreement to present in other ways between students and instructors

    C1

    延後期末考試日期(時間)

    Final exam date postponement

    C2

    書面(口頭)報告取代考試

    Written (oral) reports replace exams

    C3

    Exams replace written (oral) reports

    考試取代書面(口頭)報告

    D1

    由師生雙方議定

    Negotiated by both teachers and students

  • Make-up Class Information
  • Course Schedule
    9/1Week 1In-person meeting: 課程介紹 Introductions and Welcome (9/1 in-person session)
    9/8Week 2Early American History and the High Qing Readings: Dong Wang, Introduction, Chapter 1 Yankee Merchants and the China Trade, Chapter 2 Opium Wars and the Open Door, Ch. 3 Chinese Immigration: Roots in the United States. (9/8 in-person session)
    9/15Week 3Early American History and the Qing Readings: Dong Wang, Introduction, Chapter 1 Yankee Merchants and the China Trade, Chapter 2 Opium Wars and the Open Door, Ch. 3 Chinese Immigration: Roots in the United States. Primary Sources as Assigned Come to class prepared to discuss the assigned readings. (9/15 online, Google Meet session) First Reading Reaction Due 9/14
    9/22Week 4US-Qing Relations through the Crises of the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries Readings: Dong Wang, Ch. 4 American Protestantism: Roots in China, Ch. 5 Revolutions, Nationalism, and Internationalization, Ch. 6 The Pacific War and Red China. Primary Sources as Assigned (9/22 online, Google Meet session)
    9/29Week 5No Class 9/29
    10/6Week 6No Class 10/6, Second Reading Reaction (Chs. 4-6) Due 10/12
    10/13Week 7US-Qing Relations through the Crises of the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries Readings: Dong Wang, Ch. 4 American Protestantism: Roots in China, Ch. 5 Revolutions, Nationalism, and Internationalization, Ch. 6 The Pacific War and Red China. Primary Sources as Assigned Prospectus (Due 10/14) and Informal Presentations of Topics (in class, details on NTU COOL assignment) (10/13 online, Google Meet session)
    10/20Week 8Cold War and Rapprochement Readings: Dong Wang, Ch. 7 Deterrence and Negotiation: American-Chinese Relations at the height of the Cold War, Ch. 8 Facing East and West: Agents of Encounter, Ch. 9 Renewing the Bilateral Relationship, 1970–1989. Primary Sources as Assigned (10/20 online, Google Meet session)
    10/27Week 9Cold War and Rapprochement Readings: Dong Wang, Ch. 7 Deterrence and Negotiation: American-Chinese Relations at the height of the Cold War, Ch. 8 Facing East and West: Agents of Encounter, Ch. 9 Renewing the Bilateral Relationship, 1970–1989. Primary Sources as Assigned (10/27 online, Google Meet session) Third Reading Reaction (Chs. 7-9) Due 10/26
    11/3Week 10Into the Current Era Readings: Dong Wang, Ch. 10 The China Market and the Allure of the United States, Ch. 11 Clashes, Cooperation, and Fluctuations in the Relationship, Ch. 12 The Race: Changing Dynamics in the Economic, Social, and Cultural Arenas, Epilogue. Primary Sources as Assigned (11/3 online, Google Meet session)
    11/10Week 11Into the Current Era Readings: Dong Wang, Ch. 10 The China Market and the Allure of the United States, Ch. 11 Clashes, Cooperation, and Fluctuations in the Relationship, Ch. 12 The Race: Changing Dynamics in the Economic, Social, and Cultural Arenas, Epilogue. Primary Sources as Assigned (11/10 online, Google Meet session) Fourth Reading Reaction (Chs. 10-12) Due 11/9
    11/17Week 12Taiwan, in the US-China Relationship Readings: Khan, Introduction, Ch1 The Making of the Taiwan Problem: 1943 to 1953, Ch 2 Choosing Between Two Tyrannies: 1953 to 1971, Ch 3 Toward Another Crisis: 1971 to 1996. Primary Sources as Assigned First Drafts Due 11/18, and Informal Presentations in Class (11/17 online, Google Meet session)
    11/24Week 13Taiwan, in the US-China Relationship Readings: Khan, Introduction, Ch1 The Making of the Taiwan Problem: 1943 to 1953, Ch2 Choosing Between Two Tyrannies: 1953 to 1971, Ch3 Toward Another Crisis: 1971 to 1996. Primary Sources as Assigned. (11/24 online, Google Meet session) Fifth Reading Reaction (Khan Intro, Chs. 1-3) Due 11/23
    12/1Week 14Taiwan, in the US-China Relationship Readings: Khan, Ch 4 The Hardening Line: 1996 to 2020, Ch 5 After Covid, Epilogue. Primary Sources as Assigned (12/1 online, Google Meet session)
    12/8Week 15Taiwan, in the US-China Relationship (Part 2) Readings: Khan, Ch 4 The Hardening Line: 1996 to 2020, Ch 5 After Covid, Epilogue. Primary Sources as Assigned (12/8 online, Google Meet session) Sixth Reading Reaction (Khan Chs. 4-5, Epilogue) Due 12/7
    12/15Week 16Review and Presentations (12/15 Online, Google Meet session) Presentation with slides (3-5 minutes), delivered in this 12/15 class or uploaded to the NTU COOL assignment Seventh Reading Reaction (Primary Source of Your Choice), Due 12/17 Second Drafts Due 1/10/26, 11:59pm