
One China, Many Taiwans
The Geopolitics of Cross-Strait Tourism
Ian Rowen(Author)
Cornell University Press
Published on 15. January 2023
Book
Hardback
200 pages
978-1-5017-6693-0 (ISBN)
Description
One China, Many Taiwans shows how tourism performs and transforms territory. In 2008, as the People's Republic of China pointed over a thousand missiles across the Taiwan Strait, it sent millions of tourists in the same direction with the encouragement of Taiwan's politicians and businesspeople. Contrary to the PRC's efforts to use tourism to incorporate Taiwan into an imaginary "One China," tourism aggravated tensions between the two polities, polarized Taiwanese society, and pushed Taiwanese popular sentiment farther toward support for national self-determination.
Consequently, Taiwan was performed as a part of China for Chinese group tourists versus experienced as a place of everyday life. Taiwan's national identity grew increasingly plural, such that not just one or two, but many Taiwans coexisted, even as it faced an existential military threat. Ian Rowen's treatment of tourism as a political technology provides a new theoretical lens for social scientists to examine the impacts of tourism in the region and worldwide.
Consequently, Taiwan was performed as a part of China for Chinese group tourists versus experienced as a place of everyday life. Taiwan's national identity grew increasingly plural, such that not just one or two, but many Taiwans coexisted, even as it faced an existential military threat. Ian Rowen's treatment of tourism as a political technology provides a new theoretical lens for social scientists to examine the impacts of tourism in the region and worldwide.
Reviews / Votes
One China, Many Taiwans will be useful for scholars interested in the relationship between tourism and political identity in East Asia and beyond. The book's readability will also make it a go-to title for syllabi on tourism, Taiwanese political identity, and political movements in contemporary East Asia. * Asian Studies Review *More details
Language
English
Place of publication
Ithaca
United States
Product notice
Paper over boards
Illustrations
7 b&w halftones, 1 map - 7 Halftones, black and white - 1 Maps
Dimensions
Height: 229 mm
Width: 152 mm
Thickness: 22 mm
Weight
907 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-5017-6693-0 (9781501766930)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

E-Book
01/2023
Cornell University Press
€0.00
Available for download
Person
Ian Rowen is Associate Professor at National Taiwan Normal University. He is the editor of Transitions in Taiwan. Follow him on X @iirowen.
Content
Introduction
1. How Taiwan Became an Exceptional Territory
2. The Rise of Cross-Strait Travel and Tourism
3. Taiwan as Tourist Heterotopia
4. Circling Taiwan, Chinese Tour-Group Style
5. The Varieties of Independent Tourist Experience
6. Waves of Tourists, Waves of Protest, and the End of "One China"
Epilogue
1. How Taiwan Became an Exceptional Territory
2. The Rise of Cross-Strait Travel and Tourism
3. Taiwan as Tourist Heterotopia
4. Circling Taiwan, Chinese Tour-Group Style
5. The Varieties of Independent Tourist Experience
6. Waves of Tourists, Waves of Protest, and the End of "One China"
Epilogue