Re: [Marxism] Pomeranz

[Louis Proyect <lnp3@xxxxxxxxx>]

> CB: Voyaging there to trade does not have to include staying there,
> conquering and forming settler colonies. Exploration need not include
> conquest and enslavement. The very difference we are discussing is that the
> Chinese voyaged and traded , _but did not conquer and settle_.

Charles, you are idealizing China. The notion that it consciously chose not
to build an empire like Great Britain's can be attributed to a different
set of values seems implausible. Although China (and India) were not
geographically dispersed empires in the sense of Victorian England, they
came into being as a result of aggressive expansion by various dynasties,
especially the Indian Moghuls. The history of East Asia is replete with
lesser nationalities fighting off incursions, including Vietnam which was
ruled for 8 centuries by China.


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