The Rise and Fall of the EAST: How Exams, Autocracy, Stability, and Technology Brought China Success, and Why They Might Lead to Its Decline
Exams and stability made China successful for a thousand years, and may now be the problem.
Yasheng Huang argues that the imperial examination system produced a state of exceptional durability and administrative depth while suppressing the pluralism that generates invention, and traces the pattern from the Sui dynasty to the present. The historical sweep is the strength, and the argument bears directly on China’s current trajectory.
Recommended by 1 Person
Tyler Cowen
Soon to appear is Yasheng Huang’s The Rise and Fall of the East: How Exams, Autocracy, Stability, and Technology Brought China Success, and Why They Might Lead to Its Decline.
Source · July 2023
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