On Aug. 25, sinologist Colin Mackerras was one of 20 foreigners awarded at the 9th Special Book Award by the Chinese government for writing many influential texts that shed light on Chinese culture, correcting misconceptions about China to people overseas.
Mackerras, an Australian who first came to China in 1964, has written several books about China, including "China in Transformation: 1900-1949" and "Western Images of China since 1949."
The Special Book Award was first established by the Chinese government in 2005. It aims to recognize foreign writers and translators who have contributed to spreading Chinese culture to other countries, usually by writing about China or translating Chinese texts.
Mackerras aims to study China through an objective lens, claiming that the West has a long history of viewing China from a political perspective.
"The main point I want to make is what influences Western perspectives on China is as much the West as it is China. In other words, politics is in everything," Mackerras told the Global Times.
Mackerras pointed out how U.S. policy during the 20th century has been the main indicator as to the West's perception of China.
"In the 20th century, in the first half, the Americans thought of China as an ally against enemies like Japan. But in the second half, when the Communist Party of China came to power, they immediately changed. They were not ready for any perspectives on the Republic of China (1912-49). But after the Cultural Revolution (1966-76), this image changed again towards the positive. As soon as Nixon said he was coming to China, which was in July, 1971, the image changed from negative to positive very, very quickly, almost overnight," Mackerras said.
"But there was not a big change in China. The change was in America. The government decided it's better to have China as a friend instead of an enemy, so Nixon decided that he would come to China, and Kissinger adopted a policy that was very defensive of China. The image changed from negative to positive very quickly," he added.
Despite politics playing a huge role in people's perceptions, Mackerras is confident that texts that talk about China can help people make informed perceptions.