Dear Mr. Leonard,

Although your article “A twisted tale of Chinese Porcelain” is an interesting reminder of Sino-Western historical relations, it fails to present the whole story. China had closed itself off to the rest of the world for centuries. Its treatments of neighboring states as tributaries and its belief that it was culturally, socially and military superior lulled the country into a false sense of security.

Instead of engagement, China, in its xenophobic stasis, practiced a foreign policy that was focused upon appeasement and dismissal. In fact, they did not even have a bureau during this period of the Qing dynasty devoted to foreign affairs. To understand their response to the Western presence off their shores, you only need to look towards their response towards marauders on their Western borders within the same period.

This is not to say that the Opium Wars or the subsequent reparations and colonization’s were not abhorrent; but to suggest that “China never had a chance to join the global economy on its own terms -- from the 19th century on” is a selective read on China during the late 19th and early 20th century.

The Guangxu Emperor attempted sweeping reforms during the One Hundred Days Reform before being locked up by Cixi under the request of other imperial princes who feared change and ‘barbarian’ influence. Before him, the Tongzhi Restoration tried to restore the glory of the Qing dynasty through an amalgamation of Confucian ideals and western technology. Groups of Chinese were sent to the United States to learn the ‘barbarian’s’ culture. Sun Yat-sun and other reform minded Chinese sought to modernize China only to have his dreams hijacked, not by the West but by a warlord, Yuan Shikai, who proclaimed himself the emperor of a new dynasty.

That is not to say that Western and Japanese powers did not have their influence on events that affected how China has been shaped. But to suggest that today’s intellectual property battles echoes the gunboat diplomacy of the past, selectively ignores history as well as gives far more power to the West today than they deserve: Whereas the British easily defeated the Chinese with what amounted to a bit more than an expeditionary force during the first and second Opium War, the battle to protect Intellectual Property in a country that historically believes that imitation is a form of flattery, and whose rule of law is bested by rule of authority and cronyism finds most of the empty threats by US trade representatives falling on deaf ears.

Great post, Timothy, but I think you underestimate just how deeply the cultural memory of the Opium War and the foreign concessions resonates in China.

Obviously this is nitpickery and not central to the thrust of this post, but I felt I must point out that in addition to copyright and patent law, there exists a separate, largely non-statutory body of law that deals with trade secrets. And trade secret rights are are, in theory, protectable indefinitely.

protected trade secrets guarded by thickets of patents

Patents exist to prevent trade secrets by providing incentive and protection for sharing technology. The technology is described in detail, published in the patent, and then may be licensed by others.

An actual trade secret, such as the formula for Coca-Cola, is not patented. It is protected by its secrecy alone.

This is an important part of how the world works.

You are right to believe that the Chinese are very sensitive to the Western/Japan imperialism during that period; however in terms of its affect on the country, I would argue that corruption, uprisings, famines and the almost stoic rigidity of the Qing had a far more sweeping impact on the country than the West did until Japanese Invasion of course.

It is easier for the Chinese and for many in the West to overestimate the real impact of the concession areas and the Opium Wars on China’s awakening. I suspect that this over-emphasis on Western Imperialism has much more to do with how difficult it is for China to accept that after thousands of years of being the most advanced civilization in the world they lost their standing and are now struggling to rebuild there presence.

Wow, good letters.

Picking one more nit: is it really better known that the Chinese invented movable type or the compass than that it invented porcelain? It is after all, widely known as "china".

Hi!

As you can read in "Guns, Germs and Steel," China was the ONLY world superpower, about 100 years before Columbus discovered America.

China sent a fleet of ships across the Indian Ocean to Africa (a lot further than going across the Atlantic), and even sent their ships around the world, if you believe more recent research (see below). The Emperor decided he didn't like ships and destroyed them, destroyed the shipyards, and forbade anyone in China from making ships.

So, don't feel too sorry for China. Instead of being subjugated by the West, they could've done the subjugating if they'd chose to.

PS-Here is the info on the Chinese sailing around the world, and making the maps that the Europeans got ahold of before attempting to sail across the Atlantic:

http://www.economist.com/books/displaystory.cfm?story_id=5381851

“1421: The Year China Discovered the World”, written by Gavin Menzies.