CCCH 9004
Term Paper Assignment
General Guidelines
* The term paper should be at least eight A4-size pages, double spaced, including footnotes
and bibliography (but not illustrations), on a specific topic related to the main theme of the
course: What are late imperial Chinese understandings and representations of the West, and
how do they reflect changing Chinese thoughts and cultural identities mirrored by the Western
other(s) through China’s transformation from an imperial society to a modern nation. The
term paper takes up 50% of the overall grade. The due date for paper submission is on May
12 (Friday).
* Paper grading criteria include four major aspects: argumentation (40%), organization (30%),
bibliography (20%), and language (10%).
* Required readings relevant to the topic of your choice should be cited in your paper. You are
encouraged to use additional sources. In the lectures and the tutorial consultation sessions, we
will give you instructions on how to formulate a good topic and how to find relevant reference
works. You may contact us via email when you face any difficulty in paper writing.
Sample Titles
1. Learning from Heaven (Tianxue): Matteo Ricci’s Mission Strategy in Late Ming China
2. The Making of a Utopia: Giulio Aleni’s Representation of the West in Late Ming China
3. Ferdinand Verbiest’s World Map and Sino-European Cartographic Exchanges in the Late
17th Century
4. Chinese Images of Jesus Christ in the 17th and 18th Centuries
5. Fearful Devils: Images of the Westerners in Late 19th-century China
6. God’s Chinese Son: Hong Xiuquan’s Re-interpretation of Christianity
7. A Small Window to the Big World: Shamin and Western Life in 19th-Century Canton
8. Wealth, Power, and Civilization: Image of England in Late Qing Travel Writings
9. Trying a Different Yang Style: Western Fashion in Late 19th-Century Shanghai
* The ones in the list above are only for a reference purpose. You can think of a paper topic of your own
interest, as far as it is related to the main theme of the course.