季風人文講壇第101期：Ho-fung Hung

The China Question: Eight Centuries of Fantasy and Fear

with Ho-fung Hung

February 11, 2026｜In English 

For centuries, Western views of China have oscillated between idealization and fear, serving shifting political purposes. In this study, Ho-fung Hung shows how both Western elites and China’s authoritarian regime continue to deploy Orientalist stereotypes to advance economic and political agendas. Linking long-term historical change with the politics of ideas, the book argues that only open debate can move beyond fantasy and fear.

About the Speaker 

Ho-fung Hung (孔誥烽) is the Henry M. and Elizabeth P. Wiesenfeld Professor in Political Economy in the Department of Sociology and Nitze School of Advanced International Studies, Johns Hopkins University. His research focuses on global political economy, state formation, and China’s changing position in the world system. Hung’s work is known for bridging historical sociology with contemporary policy debates.

About the Book

For centuries, Idealized images of China were used to shame rulers for their incompetence, while China was demonized as an external threat to cover up domestic political failures. In the twentieth century, the geopolitics of global capitalism have facilitated more nuanced perspectives, but the diversifying of knowledge about China is far from complete. In this thought-provoking study, Ho-fung Hung finds that both Western elites and China's authoritarian regime today continue to promote many Orientalist stereotypes to advance their economic interests and political projects. He shows how big-picture historical, social, and economic changes are inextricably linked to fluctuations in the realm of ideas. Only open debate can overcome extremes of fantasy and fear.