Conclusion: Continuing Antagonisms and Asianism Today

Abstract

The final chapter summarizes the book’s key findings and transcends the temporal scope of the study by linking historical to twenty-first century Asianism discourse. It demonstrates how various conceptions of Asianism remain utilized in public political discourse today and how Asianist conceptual dichotomies are employed in the continuing contest for hegemony in and between China and Japan. As this chapter shows, Asianism and Asianist concepts are used widely, for example in the debate on regional identity and the creation of an East Asian Community, the critique of neo-liberal globalization, reconciliation and historical revisionism.