The Opium War by Julia Lovell
"A crisp and readable account... A heartbreaking story of a war." (Washington Post)The Opium War is both the story of China's first conflict with the West and an analysis of the country's contemporary self-image. It explores how China's national myths mold its interactions with the outside world, how public memory is spun to serve the present; and how delusion and prejudice have bedeviled its relationship with the modern West.
The conflict turned out to be rich in tragicomedy: in bureaucratic fumblings, military missteps, political opportunism and collaboration. Yet over the past 170 years, this strange tale of misunderstanding, incompetence and compromise has become the founding myth of modern Chinese nationalism: the start of China's heroic struggle against a Western conspiracy to destroy the country with opium and gunboat diplomacy.
Beginning with the dramas of the war itself, Julia Lovell explores its causes and consequences and, through this larger narrative, interweaves the curious stories of opium's promoters and attackers.
Shortlisted for the Guggenheim-Lehrman Military History Prize, The Opium War is by Julia Lovel, professor of Modern Chinese History and Literature at Birkbeck, University of London, where her research has been focused principally on the relationship between culture (specifically, literature, architecture, historiography and sport) and modern Chinese nation-building.
Julia Lovell is a writer, a translator, and a professor. She is the author of The Great Wall: China Versus the World 1000 BC-AD 2000, which has been translated into eighteen languages. She has translated numerous important Chinese works into English, including Eileen Chang's Lust, Caution, Lu Xun's Complete Fiction, and Yan Lianke's Serve the People. She is a lecturer at the University of London in modern Chinese history and literature, and she contributes to the Guardian, The Times, The Economist, and the Times Literary Supplement. She spends the most of the year with her family in China.
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9781468311730 |
| ISBN 10 | 1468311735 |
| Title | The Opium War |
| Author | Julia Lovell |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Paperback |
| Publisher | Harry N. Abrams |
| Year published | 2015-11-10 |
| Number of pages | 456 |
| Prizes | Commended for Cundill Prize 2012 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |