The Power of Rhetoric: China's Search for Legitimacy, 1989-2009
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Author(s)
Primary Supervisor
Griffiths, Martin
Other Supervisors
Smith, Doug
Year published
2012
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Show full item recordAbstract
Rising powers face the threat of containment by wary established powers, and must build legitimacy in order to forestall balancing. China’s clever use of norms, rules, and diplomatic rhetoric in international society stand as excellent examples of how a rising state cultivates a positive identity, defends its actions, and legitimises its rising power. Between 1989 and 2009 China attempted to prevent its rising power from provoking containment by selectively utilising liberal images, norms and international law to undermine other states’ ability to justify balancing operations.
This thesis refines a theoretical framework known ...
View more >Rising powers face the threat of containment by wary established powers, and must build legitimacy in order to forestall balancing. China’s clever use of norms, rules, and diplomatic rhetoric in international society stand as excellent examples of how a rising state cultivates a positive identity, defends its actions, and legitimises its rising power. Between 1989 and 2009 China attempted to prevent its rising power from provoking containment by selectively utilising liberal images, norms and international law to undermine other states’ ability to justify balancing operations. This thesis refines a theoretical framework known as a realist-constructivism and applies it to the study of China’s post-Cold War rise. Whereas many liberals, sinologists and constructivists believe that China’s engagement with the international community has altered its behaviour through socialisation and the penetration of international norms, this study claims no such independent role for norms. Instead, norms are products of the ideological preferences of the dominant international powers, but these norms can be manipulated by other motivated actors to constrain the behaviour of potential opponents. China was able to undermine resistance to its rise by manipulating the deeply held foreign policy ideals and norms of other states, and Beijing used liberal rhetoric to defend its own policies and attributes. By using appropriate rhetoric China was able to gain legitimacy as an actor and overturn the regional balance of power without facing containment, triggering a major war, or joining an alliance block. To develop this argument the thesis contains multiple case studies of China’s rhetoric, along with an analysis of international responses to Beijing’s policies. A coherent structure to Beijing’s rhetoric can be seen in disputes over territory, trade, China’s military programs, Taiwan’s status, human rights and many other issues. This leads to the conclusion that certain styles of rhetorical action are effective, and that it might be possible to predict when, how and why rhetoric will be effective legitimising a certain actor or foreign policy decision.
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View more >Rising powers face the threat of containment by wary established powers, and must build legitimacy in order to forestall balancing. China’s clever use of norms, rules, and diplomatic rhetoric in international society stand as excellent examples of how a rising state cultivates a positive identity, defends its actions, and legitimises its rising power. Between 1989 and 2009 China attempted to prevent its rising power from provoking containment by selectively utilising liberal images, norms and international law to undermine other states’ ability to justify balancing operations. This thesis refines a theoretical framework known as a realist-constructivism and applies it to the study of China’s post-Cold War rise. Whereas many liberals, sinologists and constructivists believe that China’s engagement with the international community has altered its behaviour through socialisation and the penetration of international norms, this study claims no such independent role for norms. Instead, norms are products of the ideological preferences of the dominant international powers, but these norms can be manipulated by other motivated actors to constrain the behaviour of potential opponents. China was able to undermine resistance to its rise by manipulating the deeply held foreign policy ideals and norms of other states, and Beijing used liberal rhetoric to defend its own policies and attributes. By using appropriate rhetoric China was able to gain legitimacy as an actor and overturn the regional balance of power without facing containment, triggering a major war, or joining an alliance block. To develop this argument the thesis contains multiple case studies of China’s rhetoric, along with an analysis of international responses to Beijing’s policies. A coherent structure to Beijing’s rhetoric can be seen in disputes over territory, trade, China’s military programs, Taiwan’s status, human rights and many other issues. This leads to the conclusion that certain styles of rhetorical action are effective, and that it might be possible to predict when, how and why rhetoric will be effective legitimising a certain actor or foreign policy decision.
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Thesis Type
Thesis (PhD Doctorate)
Degree Program
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
School
Griffith Business School
Copyright Statement
The author owns the copyright in this thesis, unless stated otherwise.
Item Access Status
Public
Subject
China's post-Cold War rise
Realist-constructivism
China and Taiwan
China and human rights
China politics and government 1989-2009