Constructivism and China's Rise in Global Politics Analysis

This essay examines the rise of China through the theoretical framework of constructivism in international relations. It argues that China's emergence as a global power can be understood by analyzing the ideas and beliefs held by state leaders, particularly concerning Western recognition and influence. The essay references the article "Journey to the West: China Debates Its ‘Great Power’ Identity" to explore the concept of Occidentalism, which suggests that China's identity and its perception of power are significantly shaped by Western standards and approval. The author contends that the Chinese leaders' acceptance of Western values and benchmarks, as well as their seeking of approval from Western leaders, aligns with the constructivist view that the social world is shaped by ideas and beliefs. The essay concludes that China's status as a great power is, in part, a result of the ideas and beliefs held by other state leaders. This perspective demonstrates how the constructivist approach helps in understanding the subjective nature of power and the dynamics of international relations in the context of China's rise.

Running head: CONSTRUCTIVISM AND RISE OF CHINA
Constructivism and rise of China
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

2CONSTRUCTIVISM AND RISE OF CHINA
The structuring of the global world order can be described through the lenses of several
theories of international relations (Mingst, McKibben and Arreguin-Toft 2018). Since the birth
of the nation states and their rise to power and influence in the international sphere, the theorists
of international relations have found it necessary to understand the world and the positioning of
such nation states. In this regard, the theories such as those of realism, liberalism, neo liberalism
and constructivism emerged in the global context (Mingst, McKibben and Arreguin-Toft 2018).
This essay tries to understand the rise of China through the lens of theory of constructivism in
international relations.
The People’s Republic of China has emerged to be one of the most powerful nations of
the world in the contemporary time period. The article titled “Journey to the West: China
Debates Its ‘Great Power’ Identity” analyzes this rise to power of the country (Suzuki 2014). The
author believes that the identity of a state and its recognition to its rise to power is dependent on
the recognition provided by the Western state leaders. The identity which is accorded to the
nation states of the world is considered to be a relational concept.
In this regard, it can be observed that the article can be best understood through the lens
of the theory of constructivism. One of the main advocators of the constructivist theory was that
of Alexander Wendt and he believed that the ideas of peace and chaos were constructed through
the ideas held by the state leaders (Kubálková 2015). In this sense, it can be seen that the
constructivist theory believes that the social world is generally dependent on the ideas and the
beliefs held by the leaders of such nation states.
The author of the article believes that the discourse of Occidentalism has gained a strong
foot hold in the Asian countries, especially with regards to China (Suzuki 2014). The discourse
on Occidentalism believes in the notion of Western hegemony and the ability of the Western

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states to provide the important standards of establishing a civilization. Thus, the state leaders of
China continue to accept the ideas enumerated by the state leaders of the West. In this context,
the theory of constructivism is implicitly applied in the case of this article whereby the Chinese
state leaders continue to seek the approval of the leaders of the West for their rise to power
(Barnett 2005).
Thus, to conclude, it can be observed that China is defined to be one of the great states of
the world because of the idea held by the other state leaders as to its sufficient distribution of
power in the present times as well as in the future time period. This is easier to understand with
the constructivist approach because of the subjective notion held by the states as to the power
held by them. The article therefore, becomes comprehensible when seen through the lens of the
theory of constructivism as it exists in the international sphere.

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References:
Barnett, M., 2005. Social constructivism. The Globalization of World Politics: An introduction
to international relations, pp.251-270.
Kubálková, V., 2015. International relations in a constructed world. Routledge.
Mingst, K.A., McKibben, H.E. and Arreguin-Toft, I.M., 2018. Essentials of international
relations. WW Norton & Company.
Suzuki, S., 2014. Journey to the West: China Debates Its ‘Great
Power’Identity. Millennium, 42(3), pp.632-650.