Entering into the debate over whether Western ideas of human rights are inconsistent with Asian cultures, Svensson (East Asian languages, Lund U., Sweden) analyzes the writings of Chinese thinkers since the Qing dynasty. She argues that there is a strong tradition over concern for human rights in Chinese culture, contradicting the arguments of the current Chinese leaders. Articles on law and politics, as well as writings by leading intellectual and political thinkers, are used to dissect the ongoing debates in elite discourse. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
[Provides] engaging and provocative materials for anyone interested in human rights and in social, political, and cultural transformations in China....[A] rich and contested discourse woven together sensibly and intelligently....[A] friendly textbook for instructors and students of Chinese political culture.
Marina Svensson has written a sophisticated, nuanced, complex history of human rights discource in China in the twentieth century. As she has argued and proven with her in-depth research, human rights discourse is not alien to China.
Svensson is the ideal person to write this history. Although she is an excellent scholar, she is more than that. As she puts it, 'In my case, human rights activism came first and academic work only later' (p. xii). As a result, her book is imbued with passion, while at the same time characterized by a meticulous regard for the evidence.
The book is rich in details, comprehensive in scope and careful in its exposition. It also has a superb bibliography of the writings of Chinese intellectuals since the early twentieth century. The book is a very good guide for anyone who wants to understand Chinese rights thinking in the past century.
This study demonstrates the diversity of perspectives on the existence and scope of human rights in China from the end of the Qing dynasty to the present….Highly recommended .
Marina Svensson takes a topic about which much has been written and turns it inside out in fascinating and unexpected ways through careful readings of a range of important yet often overlooked Chinese documents. The end result is a sophisticated study that illuminates the complex process by which visions of freedom and cultural traditions can clash, intersect, and reshape one another.
Marina Svensson has crafted an analytical history tracing the political and conceptual journey of the idea of human rights.
Well-written. Svensson is thoroughly steeped in the Chinese-language literature on the subject and has found an astonishing amount of material. The book is so comprehensive that it will doubtless stand as the definitive work until conditions in China change.
This study demonstrates the diversity of perspectives on the existence and scope of human rights in China from the end of the Qing dynasty to the present….Highly recommended .
Marina Svensson takes a topic about which much has been written and turns it inside out in fascinating and unexpected ways through careful readings of a range of important yet often overlooked Chinese documents. The end result is a sophisticated study that illuminates the complex process by which visions of freedom and cultural traditions can clash, intersect, and reshape one another.--Jeffrey N. Wasserstrom, University of California, Irvine; author of China's Brave New World--And Other Tales for Global Times
This study demonstrates the diversity of perspectives on the existence and scope of human rights in China from the end of the Qing dynasty to the present....Highly recommended .--CHOICE
Well-written. Svensson is thoroughly steeped in the Chinese-language literature on the subject and has found an astonishing amount of material. The book is so comprehensive that it will doubtless stand as the definitive work until conditions in China change.--The China Journal
This study demonstrates the diversity of perspectives on the existence and scope of human rights in China from the end of the Qing dynasty to the present….Highly recommended .
[Provides] engaging and provocative materials for anyone interested in human rights and in social, political, and cultural transformations in China....[A] rich and contested discourse woven together sensibly and intelligently....[A] friendly textbook for instructors and students of Chinese political culture.
Marina Svensson takes a topic about which much has been written and turns it inside out in fascinating and unexpected ways through careful readings of a range of important yet often overlooked Chinese documents. The end result is a sophisticated study that illuminates the complex process by which visions of freedom and cultural traditions can clash, intersect, and reshape one another.
Marina Svensson has written a sophisticated, nuanced, complex history of human rights discource in China in the twentieth century. As she has argued and proven with her in-depth research, human rights discourse is not alien to China.
