China in Argentina: Ethnographies of a Global Expansion (Historical and Cultural Interconnections between Latin America and Asia)

✍ Scribed by Máximo Badaró (editor)

• Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan
• Year: 2022
• Tongue: English
• Leaves: 182
• Category: Library

✦ Synopsis

This is the first book to shed light on the growing presence, influence and expansion of China in the daily life of Argentina. While most previous academic studies focus on the geopolitical and macroeconomics dimensions of the relations between Argentina and China, this book shows at a micro-social level the multiple facets of the economic, political and social influence of China in Argentina. The book presents ethnographic studies of encounters of actors and negotiation of identities from Argentina and China in companies, schools, restaurants, hospitals, districts, public and private institutions in Argentina. Themes discussed in the ethnographies include: identity struggle and strategic uses of culture in Buenos Aires' s Chinatown; teaching Chinese as the first foreign language or teaching it as a heritage language in a bilingual school; the contested production of images of Chinese authenticity in Chinese restaurants; the connections and contestations between so-called “Western medicine” and so-called “Chinese Traditional Medicine”; and the conflictive relations between Chinese expatriate bosses of Chinese state-owned enterprises and their Argentinean employees.

✦ Table of Contents

Foreword
Acknowledgments
Contents
Contributors
List of Figures
Chapter 1: Introduction: China in Argentina—Ethnographic Perspectives of a Global Expansion
Argentina–China: A Brief Overview of Political and Migratory Relations
China in Latin America
China in Africa
Contributions to This Volume
Beyond Orientalism: Markets, Cultures, and Power
References
Chapter 2: “Today we are all Chinatown”: Identity Struggle and Strategic Uses of Culture in Buenos Aires Chinatown
Introduction
Exploring Encounters
The History of Taiwan and Its Relationship with China
Encounters in Chinatown
Chinese Migration in Argentina
Bureaucracies and Identifications in the Urban Setting
Bureaucracies and Identifications in the Chinese New Year Ritual
Conclusion
References
Chapter 3: “The Language of the Future”: Mandarin Chinese as Cultural Identity and Merchandise in an Argentine-Chinese Bilingual School in Buenos Aires
Identities in the Classroom
National Symbolism
The Knowledge of Putonghua and Identity
Institutional Decisions
BACG School: Constitution and Tensions
Conclusion
References
Legal Documents
Chapter 4: “This Is Not Chinese Food”: Relocation, Authenticity, and Global Cuisines in Chinese Restaurants in Buenos Aires
Introduction
Chinese Restaurants in the Americas and in Buenos Aires
Performances of the Nation Through Gastro-Politics and Cultural Diversity Management Policies
China, Its Gastronomic Heritage, Global and Local Policies
Gastronomy, Multiculturalism, and the Marketing of Cities
Multiple Mobilities of a Gastronomic Tradition
Kitchens and Cooks: Knowing, Learning, Working
Space, Design, and Decoration
The Menu: Food Plates, Menu Design, and Language
Conclusion
References
Chapter 5: “Chinese Medicine Is Not Just Acupuncture”: The Experience of Chinese Immigrants in the Argentinian Healthcare System
Encounters Between Two Medical Models in China
Genealogy of “Chinese Medicine” and its Encounter with “Western Medicine”
Contemporary Encounters: Uses and Appropriations in Today’s China
Knowledge and Health Practices in China–Argentina Encounters
Migrant Itineraries: Between the Domestic and Public Spheres
Conclusions
References
Chapter 6: Avoiding Encounters: An Ethnographic Analysis of Sino-Argentine Business Relationships in Argentina’s Oil Industry
The Arrival of “Chinese Companies” in Argentine Patagonia
Chinese Investments in Argentina
Encounters in the Business World
The Dimensions of the Encounter: Imagination, Rationalization, and Results
Rationalize and Respond
Conclusion
References
Chapter 7: “Now Is All About China”: Recent Developments in Chinese Studies in Argentina
Introduction: Chinese Studies in Latin American Academia
Argentine Sinology in the Making: Individuals and Institutions
University of Buenos Aires (UBA)
National University of La Plata (UNLP)
National University of San Martin (UNSAM)
National University of Lanus (UNLa)
National University of Rosario (UNR)
National University of Córdoba (UNC)
International Joint-Research Center-National Scientific and Technical Research Council/Shanghai University (CIMI-CEIL-CONICET/SHU)
Universidad del Salvador (USAL)
Catholic University of Argentina (UCA)
Catholic University of Salta (UCASAL)
University of Congress (UC)
Catholic University of Córdoba (UCC)
Concluding Remarks: Argentine Sinology and Sinologists Within and Beyond Academia
References
Index