Congratulations, Dr. Hu!
On December 17, 2024, Hu Yi-fan successfully defended her doctoral dissertation at Aix-Marseille University (AMU).
Her dissertation, titled “The Making of China’s Monuments and Sino-Foreign Interactions (1872-1936),” explores the Western influence on the construction and preservation of cultural heritage in modern China. In the nineteenth century, with the rise of archaeological discoveries and the expansion of imperialism, European and American scholars, travelers, and the public expressed a strong sense of sadness and concern regarding the fate of foreign monuments. While they admired the splendor of these ancient civilizations, they also worried about the vulnerability of these monuments to modernization. In response to this sentiment, preservation societies emerged, becoming key contributors to the heritage preservation movement. These societies not only bridged the gap between official institutions and local communities but also played a significant role in transnational cultural exchanges, providing the heritage preservation movement with broad international connections and influence. The dissertation examines the evolution of monuments in China from the late nineteenth century to the mid-twentieth century, highlighting the impact of Western culture on Chinese heritage preservation awareness. The Western notion of cultural heritage preservation, introduced by foreigners, gradually transformed Chinese monuments from private property into national treasures and, eventually, into cultural heritage recognized as belonging to all humanity. The study analyzes how foreigners facilitated this transformation and explores their interactions with the Chinese heritage preservation system and awareness. Furthermore, significant transportation developments during this period promoted tourism and visits to monuments, while also contributing to the destruction of some sites. The changing fate of these monuments is documented in travel guidebooks and travelogues. Drawing on these records, this research examines the impact of transportation infrastructure, particularly railroad construction, on the development of tourism in China, as well as how these changes influenced the location of monuments and shaped foreign travelers’ perceptions and behaviors regarding Chinese heritage.
The defense committee included Anne Kerlan (CNRS, Centre Chine, Corée, Japon), Benjamin Taunay (Centre d’études français sur la Chine contemporaine), Cécile Armand (CNRS, Institut d’Asie Orientale), Florence Bretelle-Establet (CNRS, Université Paris Diderot), and Christian Henriot (PhD advisor, Aix-Marseille University).
The defense concluded four years of research as part of the “Elites, Networks, and Power in Modern China” (ENP-China) project funded by the European Research Council (ERC). Following Dr. Blouin’s thesis in natural language processing, defended two years ago, this is the second doctoral dissertation successfully completed under the auspices of the ERC-funded ENP-China project. Dr. Hu’s doctoral research made extensive use of resources and methodologies developed by ENP-China, notably the Modern China Textual Database and the HistText application, for which Christian Henriot was awarded a Proof of Concept Grant from the ERC last year.
OpenEdition suggests that you cite this post as follows:
Cécile Armand (December 18, 2024). Congratulations, Dr. Hu! Elites, Networks and Power in modern China. Retrieved February 15, 2025 from https://doi.org/10.58079/131yk