The Making Of South East Asia Rle Modern East And South East Asia

From the time of its original publication in France, this cultural history (first published in English in 1966) by an international authority has stood apart from other histories of South East Asia. Most such accounts describe events before 1500 in summary fashion, and concentrate on later developments. This book, on the contrary, deals mainly with the earlier, formative epochs that marked the flowering in the region of the Great Traditions of Hinduism and of Buddhism. Following a succinct sketch of the prehistoric period, the book moves on to a chronological account of the developments from the Chinese conquest of Annam in the third century to the period of European conquest in the nineteenth. It reflects the author’s thoughtful views concerning the evolution of political institutions, religions, literatures, and arts that distinguished the region. In geographical scope it embraces Thailand, Burma, and the area formerly known as French Indochina, and is an indispensable guide to the making of the region.

Will national independence bring to the peoples of South East Asia liberty and democracy? Or will it mean corrupt government, factional strife and insolvency? Or will it mean eventual absorption by totalitarian communism? In this book, first published in 1950, the author analyses these questions, using the case history of Indonesia since 1940, in which he played a leading role, to illustrate his points. He gives an outline of the history of South East Asia, its domination by the West and its convulsion by war and nationalism. The seven nations of South East Asia – Ceylon, Burma, Siam, Indo-China, Malaya, Indonesia and the Philippines – have a great deal in common: except for Siam, they are all struggling through the formative years of nationhood; except for Ceylon, they were all occupied and pillaged by Japan during the War. They are of great value to other nations as a source of raw materials and foodstuffs. Their political and economic structure is of vital importance, both to themselves and to us and unless their new nationalism can be strengthened, the free world may lose a valuable asset to its economy and an ally against totalitarianism in Asia.

For most people, the ‘economic miracle’ in Asia means Japanese, Korean or Taiwanese dynamism. Less is known about Southeast Asia, where economies grouping over 300 million people have clocked astounding growth rates since 1970. But fast growth is only part of the story. In this book, first published in 1989, James Clad offers an inside look at Malaysia’s ‘kampong commerce’, at oil-rich Brunei’s ‘Shell-fare state’ and at Thailand’s business blend of bureaucrats, generals and local Chinese. The author opens the window on business politics in Indonesia and the Philippines, as well as explaining how Singapore, although a notable exception to economic passivity and business corruption, still remains hostage to geography and overseas Chinese insecurity. Apart from these country surveys, this book also analyses the constants of South East Asia and Hong Kong, including commodity earnings and the financial power of the Chinese. It describes claims of ‘intellectual dishonesty’ at Asia’s largest development bank and counters fashionable optimism that weak regional institutions will evolve into an Asian common market. Yet Clad also describes South East Asia’s impressive achievements, including an account of how their new multinational companies are feeling their way into the world economy.

The modern states of Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand, the Philippines, Myanmar, Malaysia, Singapore, Cambodia, Laos, Brunei, and East Timor were once a tapestry of kingdoms, colonies, and smaller polities linked by sporadic trade and occasional war. By the end of the nineteenth century, however, the United States and several European powers had come to control almost the entire region - only to depart dramatically in the decades following World War II. perspective on this complex region. Although it does not neglect nation-building (the central theme of its popular and long-lived predecessor, In Search of Southeast Asia), the present work focuses on economic and social history, gender, and ecology. It describes the long-term impact of global forces on the region and traces the spread and interplay of capitalism, nationalism, and socialism. It acknowledges that modernization has produced substantial gains in such areas as life expectancy and education but has also spread dislocation and misery. Organizationally, the book shifts between thematic chapters that describe social, economic, and cultural change, and country chapters emphasizing developments within specific areas. will establish a new standard for the history of this dynamic and radically transformed region of the world.

Six contemporary historians trace the development of distinctive cultural, political, and social institutions in Southeast Asia