Easternization not Westernization: Modernity is a Global Formation – Teaching Guide

Outline of Presentation – with [Timecode] & Slide #

We talk about “Westernization” and “modernization” as if they are the same thing, but [00:26]

Afro-Eur-Asia or “Eurasia” has been one continent for over 20,000 #1 –3
Exchanges of enormous variety and invention have traveled across Eurasian for thousands of years #4–9
Before “modernization” began, there was a synthesis of technological developments across Eurasia
Why, then, do we equate “modernization” with “Westernization”? Why do we not see it as “Globalization”?
Throughout much of early history Asia was richer than Europe. This is due partly to agriculture
Many inventions or new ideas came from Asia, and in particular, China.
Marco Polo describes what he sees in China in and the Europeans dismiss it as “absurd” or “impossible,” such as [02:34]
- Burning coal for heat
- Well laid out cities [03:23]
- Paper #11
Europeans intrigued by Chinese porcelain and experiment for decades to produce similar products [03:50] #12–15
Quote on how E and W combined, in a powerful combination, long before the moment of “modernization” #16

Calling new developments “Westernization” is a 19^th c invention [06:00]

Trajectory of Exchanges throughout history; many examples of “vectors” of exchange:
Modern politics6:30
State support of commerce; “laissez-faire”
Francois de Quesnay (1694–1774) #18–19
a French economist
part of the “physiocrat” school #21–22
admired the Chinese system of government
Civil service exam #24
France’s unified/centralized school system called “le system chinois” when introduced [09:12] #25
“Report on Qing China” #27
Catholic Jesuits in China sent back many reports on what they observed in China; Matteo Ricci (1582–1610) in particular #28
Voltaire (1694-1778), an influential French philosopher, admired the Chinese system because of its toleration of different religions within its empire (vs the power of the Church in France) #30
“Reason vs. Revelation” #31
Enlightenment period in Europe: “Age of Enlightenment” or “Age of Reason” in the 17th and 18th c in Europe [09:50]
Slow (as in gradual) growth of democracy; merit-based system of government as opposed to aristocrats automatically filling government positions (Chinese civil service model)

Why was Europe poorer than Asia prior to the Industrial Revolution? #36 [15:00]

Surplus in an agricultural society comes from land and labor
China invented many agricultural tools and methods that helped them produce more surplus than Europe
Agricultural surplus is important for supporting the growth of cities and commerce
Many examples of these innovations and inventions
Surplus in agriculture creates capital to use in industrialization #37
Elements of industrialization #37–60
Chart of Chinese inventions giving date invented and date appeared in Europe [21:50] #61

Europe develops machines further in the 19^th c. leading to the Industrial Revolution

Given the trajectory of inventions across Eurasia for centuries before who gets the credit? #64
Then why is it only Europe “the West” that gets credit? [24:45]
Why is “modernization” only credited to Europeans, “the West”?

BUT, history is not a competition!

As historians, all we have to do is to tell the truth about how things happened.

Mineral Energy

Examples of use of energy and efficient production techniques used in China, prior to “industrialization”:
Coal mined in Xinjiang in early times #74
Natural gas extraction #77
Cast iron #79
Production techniques go far back in Chinese history: [28:14]
- Standardization of product (see Han dynasty tomb figures)
- Division of labor among workers #80
- Standards of labor set #82
Reference to a specific handbook for producing porcelain, issued under Louis XIV – demonstrates that people at that time knew exactly what inventions had come across Eurasia [31:00] #86–91
Josiah Wedgwood, founder of the famous Wedgwood china, credits China in the founding of his factory in 1743
What Europe learned from China#86
Industrial Revolution took place in England in the mid-1800s but it was a global achievement #91
Efficient machines
Mineral energy
Huge factories

Why then? Why England? – 2 books recommended #92