1991 book by Wang Huning
America Against America ![]() |
| Author | Wang Huning |
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| Original title | 美国反对美国 |
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| Language | Mandarin Chinese |
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| Genre | Politics |
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| Publisher | Shanghai Literature and Art Publishing House |
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Publication date | 1991 |
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| Publication place | Mainland China |
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| Media type | Print |
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America Against America is a nonfiction book written by Chinese political scientist Wang Huning about his experiences as a visiting scholar in the United States in 1988.
Synopsis
The book discusses Wang's experiences a visiting scholar in the United States for six months, where he spent the first three months at the University of Iowa, three weeks at the University of California, Berkeley, and visited many other universities. During his time in the United States, Wang visited over 30 cities and close to 20 universities.[1][2]
The book talks about the increasing challenges he saw in the U.S., such as inequality, economic conflicts, decaying of social values and commodification.[3] He also praised the strengths of the U.S., such as its modernity,[4] and peaceful transitions of power,[5] and was described by The Economist as "seeing the weaknesses in America's system, but not exaggerating them".[6] In Wang's own words:
My intention with this title is to show that America contains contradictions that cannot be dismissed with a single sentence. In the old days, people had a dogmatic view of American society as merely the “exploitation of surplus value,” a “dictatorship of the bourgeoisie,” and nothing more. Now there is another extreme, some people imagine the United States as a paradise, rich and without flaw. In fact American society doesn’t match either of these descriptions, and often finds itself in fundamental contradiction with them. There are strengths and weaknesses, and wherever strength can be found, weakness can also be found. America is a contradiction, it contains multitudes. This is what I mean by “America Against America.”[7]
Reception
In 2021, the book received renewed interest in the aftermath of the storming of the United States Capitol, with some used copies surging to 16,600 yuan ($2500) on antiques sites.[8]
References
