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New York before Chinatown:

Orientalism and the Shaping of American Culture, 1776-1882

ISBN-13: 9780801867941
Publisher: JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY PRESS
Imprint: JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY PRESS
By John Kuo Wei Tchen
Price: AUD $73.99
Stock: 0 in stock
Availability: This book is temporarily out of stock, order will be despatched as soon as fresh stock is received.
Local release date: 14/10/2001
Format: Paperback 416 pages Weight: 0g
Categories: History of the Americas [HBJK]

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From George Washington's desire (in the heat of the Revolutionary War) for a proper set of Chinese porcelains for afternoon tea, to the lives of Chinese-Irish couples in the 1830s, to the commercial success of Chang and Eng (the ''Siamese Twins''), to rising fears of ''heathen Chinee,'' New York before Chinatown offers a provocative look at the role Chinese people, things, and ideas played in the fashioning of American culture and politics. Piecing together various historical fragments and anecdotes from the years before Chinatown emerged in the late 1870s, historian John Kuo Wei Tchen redraws Manhattan's historical landscape and broadens our understanding of the role of port cultures in the making of American identities. Tchen tells his story in three parts. In the first, he explores America's fascination with Asia as a source of luxury items, cultural taste, and lucrative trade. In the second, he explains how Chinese, European-Americans in Yellowface, and various caricatures became objects of curiosity in the expansive commercial marketplace. In the third part, Tchen focuses on how Americans' attitude toward the Chinese changed from fascination to demonization, leading to the passage of the Chinese Exclusion Acts beginning in 1882.

Contents:

List of Illustrations

Preface

Introduction

Pt. 1: A Culture of Distinction

1 Porcelain, Tea, and Revolution

2 What Does China Want?

3 The Port's Rise

Pt. 2: Port Exchanges

4 A Pioneer Settlement

5 ""Edifying Curiosities""

6 Self-Possessed Men

7 Stereotypes and Realities

Pt. 3: The ""Chinese Question""

8 ""The Alarm""

9 Visualizing ""Ah Sin""

10 Building Community

11 Descent to Darkness

12 Appo's Demise

Epilogue: The ""American Century""

Notes

Selected Bibliography

Index

""An outstanding book. It simply leaves you wanting more!""

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New York before Chinatown:

Orientalism and the Shaping of American Culture, 1776-1882