Within Asia, the period from 1849 to 1960s had witnessed the rise and decline of the Pax Britannica, the growth of multiple and often competing anti-colonial movements, and the entrenchment of the nation-state system. Beyond Pan-Asianism follows the complex interactions between China, India, and their neighbouring societies against this background of imperialism and nationalist resistance.
The contributors to this volume, from India, the West, and the Chinese-speaking world, write about a tremendous breadth of figures, including novelists, soldiers, intelligence officers, archivists, among others, by deploying published and archival materials in multiple Asian and Western languages. This volume also attempts to answer the question of how China-Indian connectedness in the modern period should be narrated. Instead of providing one definite answer, it engages with prevailing and past frameworks--notable 'Pan-Asianism' and 'China/India as Method'--with an aim to provoke further discussions on how histories of China-India and, by extension, the non-Western world, can be conceptualized.
About the Author
Tansen Sen is Director of the Center for Global Asia, Professor of History, NYU Shanghai; Global Network Professor, NYU. He specializes in Asian history and religions and has special scholarly interests in India-China interactions, Indian Ocean connections, and Buddhism.