Australian Laureate Fellowships - Grant ID: FL120100155
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$2,796,420.00
Summary
Informal life politics in the remaking of Northeast Asia: from Cold War to post-Cold War. This project will create a new approach to our understanding of non-state politics and social change in Northeast Asia as that region completes its crucial transition to a post-Cold War order. It will advance scholarship in area studies and strengthen Australia's place as a world-leading centre for the study of Northeast Asia.
European Naturalists and the Constitution of Human Difference in Oceania: Crosscultural Encounters and the Science of Race, 1768-1888. This research will promote better understanding of the historical antecedents to contemporary Australian regional interventions, relations with our neighbours and conceptions of racial or ethnic differences. It thus directly addresses current debates on the politics of history. The assumptions about regional differences which underpin current Australian attitudes ....European Naturalists and the Constitution of Human Difference in Oceania: Crosscultural Encounters and the Science of Race, 1768-1888. This research will promote better understanding of the historical antecedents to contemporary Australian regional interventions, relations with our neighbours and conceptions of racial or ethnic differences. It thus directly addresses current debates on the politics of history. The assumptions about regional differences which underpin current Australian attitudes and policies stem from much earlier debates on the racial histories and collective physical variations of Oceanian people and from beliefs about natural European dominance over indigenous populations. This project will produce an accessible history of the genesis of such ideas and demonstrate the historical embeddedness of Australia within the wider context of Oceania.Read moreRead less
Beijing: China's Heritage and the City as Spectacle. This project will provide the major national focus for trans-historical research on China, that is research that is grounded in traditional Sinological skills but that addresses some of the most important and long-term issues of Chinese history, culture and society and their contemporary relevance in North-east Asia and the Asia Pacific. It will provide a national hub for the focused study of late-traditional China and its contemporary relevan ....Beijing: China's Heritage and the City as Spectacle. This project will provide the major national focus for trans-historical research on China, that is research that is grounded in traditional Sinological skills but that addresses some of the most important and long-term issues of Chinese history, culture and society and their contemporary relevance in North-east Asia and the Asia Pacific. It will provide a national hub for the focused study of late-traditional China and its contemporary relevance to Australia.
This project through publications and an innovative web-presence will provide a unique opportunity for a multifaceted understanding of the underpinnings of the cultural heft that China will increasingly demonstrate in the years to come.Read moreRead less
Naming Oceania: geography, raciology and local knowledge in the 'fifth part of the world', 1511-1920. A history of the marriage of space and race in our region restores Australia to regional histories and wider Oceania to global histories. It offers a grounded basis to grasp how regional, national and local nomenclatures and identities mutated over 400 years, in contexts of European exploration, imperialism, colonisation, emergence of the science of race and intensifying face-to-face encounters. ....Naming Oceania: geography, raciology and local knowledge in the 'fifth part of the world', 1511-1920. A history of the marriage of space and race in our region restores Australia to regional histories and wider Oceania to global histories. It offers a grounded basis to grasp how regional, national and local nomenclatures and identities mutated over 400 years, in contexts of European exploration, imperialism, colonisation, emergence of the science of race and intensifying face-to-face encounters. By uncovering traces of past naming systems, Indigenous and foreign, the research will show how present names and boundaries of states, places and people are constructs rather than eternal truths. It will cast light on the antecedents to modern Australian regional interventions, neighbourly relations and conceptions of racial or ethnic differences.Read moreRead less
Historical Conflict and Reconciliation in East Asia: Media, History Wars and the Search for Regional Understanding. The relationship between Japan, China and Korea is of central importance to the future stability of our region, and of particular political and economic importance to Australia. This project will promote a deeper understanding of current tensions in the relationship between these countries, and will contribute to the practical search for resolutions to cultural and ideological dime ....Historical Conflict and Reconciliation in East Asia: Media, History Wars and the Search for Regional Understanding. The relationship between Japan, China and Korea is of central importance to the future stability of our region, and of particular political and economic importance to Australia. This project will promote a deeper understanding of current tensions in the relationship between these countries, and will contribute to the practical search for resolutions to cultural and ideological dimensions of this conflict. By addressing the relationship between changing methods of communication and contrasting images of history, the project will also contribute to the development of new theoretical approaches to the communication of historical knowledge in the twenty-first century. Read moreRead less
The Overseas Chinese Water Frontier of Southeast Asia, 1700-1900. This project proposes to view the South China Sea/Gulf of Thailand rim as a single economic region, a "water frontier" that endured for two centuries. Focusing on the Mekong delta and adjacent coasts, it will examine the major roles the Chinese played in the establishment of the Siamese and Vietnamese states. Despite the frontier's marginalisation in the nineteenth century, the populations supplied the manpower and expertise that ....The Overseas Chinese Water Frontier of Southeast Asia, 1700-1900. This project proposes to view the South China Sea/Gulf of Thailand rim as a single economic region, a "water frontier" that endured for two centuries. Focusing on the Mekong delta and adjacent coasts, it will examine the major roles the Chinese played in the establishment of the Siamese and Vietnamese states. Despite the frontier's marginalisation in the nineteenth century, the populations supplied the manpower and expertise that fueled the national and colonial economies which later developed around Saigon, Bangkok and Singapore. Our aim is to restore the "lost" history of this region and its peoples and to set new agendas for future research.Read moreRead less
Spectacle and Multimedia in Late-Eighteenth-Century Europe: a programme of written and multi-media histories. I aim to demonstrate that Philippe de Loutherbourg, an eighteenth-century European artist and set-designer, pioneered revolutionary developments in the technology and culture of multi-media through the agency of 'spectacles.' These multi-sensory displays for entertainment and knowledge foreshadow the advent of modern cinema and multimedia, and suggest new ways of praticing history throug ....Spectacle and Multimedia in Late-Eighteenth-Century Europe: a programme of written and multi-media histories. I aim to demonstrate that Philippe de Loutherbourg, an eighteenth-century European artist and set-designer, pioneered revolutionary developments in the technology and culture of multi-media through the agency of 'spectacles.' These multi-sensory displays for entertainment and knowledge foreshadow the advent of modern cinema and multimedia, and suggest new ways of praticing history through multimedia re-creations.Read moreRead less
'Puppet States' Revisited: Empire and Sovereign Subordination in Modern Asia. The term 'puppet state' is a part of public discourse in Australia. It is used by scholars, journalists, commentators and members of the public to characterize specific international relationships in the contemporary world. While being used as an analytical term, it carries a strong pejorative connotation. This project will contribute significantly to giving the term clarity and stability of meaning that will enhance t ....'Puppet States' Revisited: Empire and Sovereign Subordination in Modern Asia. The term 'puppet state' is a part of public discourse in Australia. It is used by scholars, journalists, commentators and members of the public to characterize specific international relationships in the contemporary world. While being used as an analytical term, it carries a strong pejorative connotation. This project will contribute significantly to giving the term clarity and stability of meaning that will enhance the quality of public discussion of international affairs and lead to a more informed approach to safeguarding Australia. The insights we generate by this comparison will illuminate the controversial contemporary issue of international intervention in the territory of sovereign states.Read moreRead less
The Social History of Punishment in Modern China. The project will investigate the cultural and historical roots of the political and social practices of punishment in modern Chinese history in order to answer the question of why harsh punitive measures have been so readily used and accepted. The subject has never been adequately researched. Extensive use will be made of interviewing, archival materials, and a wide range of other documentation. It is important to comprehend from an historical pe ....The Social History of Punishment in Modern China. The project will investigate the cultural and historical roots of the political and social practices of punishment in modern Chinese history in order to answer the question of why harsh punitive measures have been so readily used and accepted. The subject has never been adequately researched. Extensive use will be made of interviewing, archival materials, and a wide range of other documentation. It is important to comprehend from an historical perspective the past and present Chinese mentality regarding punitiveness and law-and-order in order to come to grips with human rights issues and China's legal system.Read moreRead less
Indigenous peoples, the British Empire, and self-government for the Australian colonies. This study enhances our understanding of the foundations and representative functions of Australian democratic institutions, especially as they concern Indigenous-settler-missionary-imperial relationships. In drawing out the connections between two major questions for Australian history and modern society - democracy and Indigenous dispossession - the project will contribute deeper historical knowledge to cu ....Indigenous peoples, the British Empire, and self-government for the Australian colonies. This study enhances our understanding of the foundations and representative functions of Australian democratic institutions, especially as they concern Indigenous-settler-missionary-imperial relationships. In drawing out the connections between two major questions for Australian history and modern society - democracy and Indigenous dispossession - the project will contribute deeper historical knowledge to current public debate about Indigenous policy past and present. It will also illuminate the importance of understanding Australian history in broad transcolonial and transnational contexts and enhance the contribution of Australian historians to imperial, missionary, and comparative settler-society histories.Read moreRead less