Entwined Destinies: America and China and the History of the Present

In this special lecture, Gordon Chang will speak about his book, Fateful Ties: A History of America’s Preoccupation with China (Harvard University Press: 2015) that studies the long history of America-China relations. Chang covers this history from Jamestown to today and gives historical context for the current American fixation with China. He suggests that this fascination continues centuries of American interest in China, an interest that is peculiar to the United States. This study builds on his earlier work on Sino-American relations and Asian American history. Chang’s books include Friends and Enemies: The United States, China, and the Soviet Union, 1948-1972; Morning Glory, Evening Shadow: Yamato Ichihashi and His Internment Writing, 1942-1945; Asian Americans and Politics: Perspectives, Experiences; Chinese American Voices From the Gold Rush to the Present (University of California Press, 2006); and Asian American Art: A History, 1850-1970 (SUP, 2008).

GORDON H. CHANG is Oliver H. Palmer Professor in Humanities and Professor of History at Stanford University. His research focuses on the history of United States-East Asia relations and on Asian American history. He is affiliated with the Center for Comparative Studies in Race and Ethnicity, the American Studies Program, International Relations Program, and is Director of the Center for East Asian Studies. He is particularly interested in America in the world, the historical connections between race and ethnicity in America and foreign relations, and explores these interconnections in his teaching and scholarship. He is a recipient of both Guggenheim and ACLS fellowships, and has been a three-time fellow at the Stanford Humanities Center.

Light refreshments will be served and books will be available for purchase!

RSVP REQUIRED: http://chang-aasc.eventbrite.com

Sponsor(s): Center for Chinese Studies, UCLA International Institute, Department of History, Asian American Studies Center, Asian American Studies Department , Stanley Kwok Lau and Dora Wong Lau Endowment for Chinese American Studies