Postwar Taiwan History: A Nation's Quest

Only by understanding post-war history can one thoroughly comprehend Taiwan today!

Wu Chung-yu (Former President, National Chiao Tung University)
Chen Tsui-lien (Professor, Department of History, National Taiwan University)
Chien Ming-jen (Founder, Mass Education Foundation)
──Highly Recommended

──In the seventy-day power vacuum between Japan's surrender in 1945 and the formal takeover by the Nationalist government, what happened that shaped the island's future destiny?
──As Taiwan experienced martial law, the White Terror, and waves of democratization, where exactly did the United States stand? When the Six Assurances were written into history, what exactly did the United States change?
──From export processing zones to technology industries, from an OEM island to a semiconductor hub, why can an island isolated diplomatically grasp the key to global technology?

Post-war Taiwan is a new country that has emerged step by step amidst the pulls and tugs of the Cold War, authoritarian rule, democratic movements, and international politics. But what exactly are the factors that have shaped Taiwan's international position, political landscape, economic structure, and socio-cultural appearance today?
The author argues that the composition of contemporary Taiwanese culture and its fundamental values is actually influenced by three major world civilizations: Chinese, Japanese, and American cultures. Among these, there has been extensive discussion about the influence of Chinese and Japanese cultures on Taiwanese society; therefore, this book deeply explores how American factors have promoted the formation of Taiwan's diverse civil society, as well as the origin and evolution of the island's "third wave of democracy."
This book cuts into the post-1945 situation, spanning the arrival of the KMT in Taiwan, the martial law system, the White Terror, the democratization movement, to Taiwan-US relations, cross-strait tensions, and the reorganization of the international order. It re-examines how Taiwan, under highly unfavorable conditions, gradually formed its current political subjectivity and social structure.
Based on a large amount of historical data and an international perspective, the book illustrates how Taiwan, amidst US-China rivalry, military threats, and diplomatic isolation, has developed a unique democratic experience, civil society, and national imagination. The book not only discusses political elites but also covers the development of economics and technology, the experiences of overseas students, and incorporates laborers, women, indigenous peoples, media, and new technologies into its scope, presenting a complete post-war panorama from the social grassroots to the international stage.