Confucius Institutes v2 (1)

CONFUCIUS INSTITUTES AND THE GLOBALIZATION OF CHINA’S SOFT POWER 35forms of experience as ineluctably entangled in a causal relationshipand to interpellate the students as both “appreciating” and “desiring”subjects, with China as the object of aspiration. Ultimately, I arguethat China’s attempts to build and promote soft power in theseprograms have both intended and contradictory effects, frequentlyrendering the object “China” problematic, while leaving “Chinese”as a an entity of desire. To enhance its nation-building process, Chinaclearly covets the desire of the global community. However, as wewill see below, CI soft power efforts may leave Chinese cultureintact as an intended soft power attraction, but only when divorcedfrom the broader intended object of desire—China—itself.I was a chaperone for one of the Summer Bridge tours in 2013.What follows is an extended description of that excursion to providethe context for an assessment of the intended production of softpower. The journey to China went relatively smoothly. We gathered,26 high school students and three chaperones at the airport at noon,sporting matching t-shirts that advertised our CI benefactor. Afterclearing security with minimal difficulty we boarded an airplanebound for Beijing. One girl fainted on the plane, while several othersdrowned themselves in the limitless supply of caffeinated beverages.A layover in Tokyo offered the opportunity for a gleeful clusterof students to avail themselves of “local” culture in the form of aJapanese McDonalds. The others gathered around the chaperonesin the boarding area, chatting about what to expect when we finallylanded on Chinese soil. Questions about bathroom options dominatedthe conversation. “Will we be able to shower every day?” one of thestudents asked, and I was not surprised by the groans elicited byone of my fellow chaperones informing the students that yes indeed,there would be many squat toilets. She added, “Well, you are goingthere partially for the experience too.”We finally arrived at our destination, a boarding school onthe outskirts of Beijing, well after midnight. A massive statue ofConfucius, rendered in marble, greeted us at the entrance. Whilestudents were shuffled off to bed, we chaperones were ushereddown a cavernous hallway decorated on one side with a mural of