The Grip of Geography: China’s Enduring Struggle for Order and Unity

Geography exerts a profound influence on a country’s dominant narrativeNarrative, power structures, and political institutions. This chapter aims to explain why and how China’s geographyGeography, China's has shaped its enduring centralised powerCentralised power structure. The chapter is structured on three crucial factors: China’s long history of coping with natural disastersNatural disaster such as large-scale floodsFloods, constant and devastating faminesFamine/hunger due to adverse weatherWeather and limited food imports, as well as severe security threats from a vulnerable northwest border. This chapter argues that these factors have influenced the Chinese conception of power. It is seen Power, conception ofas a means to prevent collective destruction and promote collective prosperityProsperity. They also shaped a pragmatic approach to the role of government and political institutions that prioritise providing food and ensuring survival, as well as impacted the early conceptualisation of ‘collective securityCollective security’. This chapter employs a comparative approach, contrasting the geographical features of Chinese and Western civilisationsWestern civilisation to illustrate these points.