The World in Guangzhou
豆瓣
Africans and Other Foreigners in South China’s Global Marketplace
Gordon Mathews / Linessa Dan Lin …
简介
Mere decades ago, the population of Guangzhou was almost wholly Chinese. Today, it is a truly global city, a place where people from around the world go to make new lives, find themselves, or further their careers. A large number of those migrants are small-scale traders from Africa who deal in Chinese goods—often knock-offs or copies of high-end branded items—to send back to their home countries. In The World in Guangzhou, Gordon Mathews explores the question of how the city became such a center of "low-end" globalization and shows what we can learn from that experience similar transformations elsewhere in the world.
Through detailed ethnographic portraits, Mathews reveals a world of globalization based on informality, reputation, and trust rather than on formal contracts. How, he asks, can such informal relationships emerge between two groups—Chinese and Sub-Saharan Africans—that don't share a common language, culture, or religion? And what happens when Africans move beyond their status as temporary residents and begin to put down roots and establish families?
Full of unforgettable characters, The World in Guangzhou presents a compelling account of globalization at ground level and offers a look into the future of urban life as transnational connections continue to remake cities around the world.
contents
Acknowledgments
1 Introduction
What This Book Is About
Impressions of Guangzhou
A Brief History of Foreigners in Guangzhou
Foreign Places in Guangzhou
How This Book’s Research Was Done
2 Foreigners in Guangzhou
“The Chinese Dream”: Stories of Eight Foreigners
Rich Foreigner, Poor Foreigner
Race and Money
Foreign Communities: Japanese and Nigerians
The Power of Rumor
Foreigners’ Attitudes toward China and Chinese
3 African-Chinese Relations
African Traders in Guangzhou: An Overview
Business Deception and Cheating
Quarrels between Africans and Chinese
Chinese Views of Africans
African Views of Chinese
4 Low-End Globalization
Low-End Globalization/High-End Globalization
How Low-End Globalization Works: Sourcing, Money, Copies, and Customs
Accounts of Low-End Globalization
Low-End Globalization’s Circuits
5 Legal-Illegal in Guangzhou
Two Paths, Legal and Illegal
Visa and Passport Worries, Jail and Deportation
Police
Accounts of Overstayers and Friends
6 Logistics Agents, Middlemen, and Cultural Brokers
Logistics Agents
Middleman
Cultural Brokers
Accounts of Logistics Agents, Middlemen, and Cultural Brokers
7 Religion in a Foreign World
“I Believe in God but Chinese Believe in Gold”
Islam in Comparison to Christianity
Christian Churches
Accounts of Religious Seekers
Religion: Implications
8 Romance, Love, Marriage, and Families: A Chinese Barack Obama?
“African Chinese”
The Travails of Chinese-African Romantic Relationships
Children
Accounts of Marriages
Conclusion: The Larger Significance of Africans in China
Notes
References
Index