Taiwan S Political And Economic Growth In The Late Twentieth Century

This text is an introductory study to the emergence of Taiwan as an independent state within the Chinese nation.

Throughout the twentieth century Taiwan was viewed as a model - whether in terms of a model colony, a model China or a development model. This perception was based on the notion of Taiwan undergoing an economic miracle and political developments. Yet much of Taiwan’s history is unique and may not be readily replicable elsewhere. Written by an impressive line up of contributors from the US, UK, Taiwan, France and Hong Kong, this book analyzes Taiwan’s economic and political achievements, and asks whether it is possible to identify through the experience of a single nation – Taiwan – the makings of a replicable model. This book will appeal to students and scholars of Taiwan, political economy, and Asia-Pacific regional development issues.

'. . . a welcome book, of particular use to graduate schools.' - A.J.H. Latham, Asia Pacific Business Review Over the past four decades, Taiwan has achieved remarkable economic growth. In this important book, a distinguished group of contributors employs a comparative perspective to explore the reasons behind and the lessons to be learned from Taiwan's success.

This book brings together a group of experts on Taiwan who attempt to analyse change on this dynamic island during the whole of the twentieth century. Thus in contrast to many works on Taiwan, this book shows just how important the Japanese colonial antecedents were to the formation of today's Taiwan and help us to understand the complexity of the problems this island will face in the twenty-first century.

The late twentieth century witnessed rapid changes not only in Taiwan’s economy, but also in its identity. Both economic as well as ideological restructuring have been basic elements in the transformation of postwar Taiwan, as rapid democratization opened a Pandora’s Box, and stirred a whirlwind of social discord. This volume considers such important questions as whether the old Taiwanese work ethic is a relic of the past, and whether Taiwan is likely to become a battleground of ideological wars. The book addresses Taiwanese nostalgia for Chinese culture; the rise and fall of postwar Taiwanese agrarian culture; the transformation of farmers’ social consciousness in the period 1950–1970; the place of Confucianism in postwar Taiwan; and the awakening of the “self ” and the development of a Taiwanese national identity in the post–World War II period. Finally, it considers whether “mutual historical understanding” may be the basis for Taiwan-Mainland relations in the twentyfirst century. This second edition includes two new chapters on the history of Taiwan after World War II, incorporating additional developments in Taiwan in the past decade. Insights extrapolated from an understanding of history are essential for grasping and solving the basic problems Taiwan now faces and, above all, the conflicted relationship between Taiwan and Mainland China. The book’s thematic undercurrent is the question of Taiwan and Mainland China: How do we deal with the tension between cultural China and political China?

Most colonies became independent countries after the end of World War II, while few of them became modernized even after decades of their independence. Taiwan is one of the few to become a modern state with remarkable achievements in its economic, socio-cultural, and political development. This book addresses the path and trajectory of the emergence of Taiwan from a colony to a modern state in the past century.

The late twentieth century witnessed rapid changes not only in Taiwan's economy, but also in its identity. Both economic as well as ideological restructuring have been basic elements in the transformation of postwar Taiwan, as rapid democratization opened a Pandora's Box, and stirred a whirlwind of social discord. This volume considers such important questions as whether the old Taiwanese work ethic is a relic of the past, and whether Taiwan is likely to become a battleground of ideological wars. The book addresses Taiwanese nostalgia for Chinese culture; the rise and fall of postwar Taiwanese agrarian culture; the transformation of farmers' social consciousness in the period 1950¿1970; the place of Confucianism in postwar Taiwan; and the awakening of the "self" and the development of a Taiwanese national identity in the post¿World War II period. Finally, it considers whether "mutual historical understanding" may be the basis for Taiwan-Mainland relations in the twenty-first century. This second edition includes a new chapter on the history of Taiwan after World War II, incorporating additional developments in Taiwan in the past decade. Insights extrapolated from an understanding of history are essential for grasping and solving the basic problems Taiwan now faces and, above all, the conflicted relationship between Taiwan and Mainland China. The book's thematic undercurrent is the question of Taiwan and Mainland China: How do we deal with the tension between cultural China and political China?

Introduction : Taiwan at a crossroads / Cal Clark, Alexander C. Tan, and Karl Ho -- Public policy preferences revealed in referendum voting : the case of Taiwan / Chi Huang, Tzu-ching Kuo, and Yu-heng Jung -- Leftist proclivity in Taiwan's political development / Wei-chin Lee -- In the eye of the storm : Taiwan, China, and the U.S. in challenging times / Steve Chan -- Taiwan's military posture toward China's confrontational stance / Elizabeth Freund Larus and Agata Wictoria Zietek -- Inconsistent struggle shadowed by the dragon : Taiwan's defence under the Tsai Ing-wen administration / Shang-su Wu -- U.S.-China relations from Trump to Biden : a systems theory assessment / John F. Copper -- Partisan polarization and fragmentation in the Taiwanese electorate : evidence from the 2020 elections / Cal Clark, Alexander C. Tan, and Karl Ho -- An etiology of party system development and voter alignments in democratic Taiwan : stability before the storm / Alexander C. Tan -- Taiwanese party manifestos and their purposes : some initial findings and thoughts / Alexander C. Tan and Boyu Chen -- Revisiting Taiwan's semi-presidentialism at a critical juncture / Yu-shan Wu -- Institutional resilience and change : the case of the Legislative Yuan in Taiwan / John Fuh-sheng Hsieh -- Mr. President Democracy : a political life in modern constitutionalism / David K.C. Huang and Nigel N.T. Li -- Opposition to gender equity in Taiwan : a linguistic perspective of social conservative language on Facebook / Ping-Hsuan Wang.