The book is a collection of sixteen intensive essays edited by Arif Dirlik(a historian) and Zhang Xudong(prof.of comparative Chinese Lit.).The essays interrogate the ambiguity and relevance of post-modernity in China while debating the phenomenon as a cultural-political question. Post-modernism was introduced to the Chinese culture in the 1980s through Fredrick Jameson's :-'cultural logic of post capitalism'.Postmodernity brought a wave of radical change influencing the modus operandi of various disciplines of arts and literature. When a third world country is exposed to modernization there is a tremendous skepticism and resistance in accepting it whole heartedly.Even today with globalization roaring wild, many heritage rich countries see it as a Western or rather a bourgeois identity.Hence, it becomes necessary for the Western world to view the modernization of any third world countries from that particular country's perspective. The books starts with elucidating the fine line between modernity and postmodernity.Terming Modernity:- canonical&conservative while Postmodernity:-avant-garde progressive.Eventually, touching all the existing socio-economic aspects of mainland China and PRC dominant Taiwan and Hongkong; it concludes by rationalizing the Chinese post-modernism effect. Although informative, the writings tends to get repetitive and a bit dragging. It is more of a text book read.
