World Heritage craze in China demonstrates the commitment of the Chinese Government at all levels to the protection of the traditional cultural heritage of the Chinese nation. This commitment results in a desire to uphold the national cultural sovereignty, and to seek acceptance and recognition from UNESCO in a variety of ways as efficiently as possible. Yan offers a thought-provoking way to think about China's unique cultural heritage, social background, heritage discourse and basic values, as well as national practices and the local responses, and how all of this interacts with the UNESCO World Heritage Centre.
Apart from the Introduction and Conclusion, Yan presents a brief and concise heading for each chapter, which attempts to describe the transition from Chinese cultural heritage discourse to world heritage discourse, both in theory and in practical responses. Beyond that, readers should bear in mind that the subtitle is slightly misleading as the monograph does not comprehensively cover every aspect of world heritage and only focuses on the Chinese Government's current concern with placing its heritage in a certain kind of global context, and on the extent to which they have succeeded in this. As the most frequently used basic terminologies in the field of cultural heritage studies, ‘Universal discourse’, ‘National culture’ and ‘Local memory’ are different but related in concepts, languages, models and practices.
The research methodologies adopted in this monograph are not limited to empirical studies of the world heritage craze in China, although three World Heritage Sites, namely, Fujian Tulou, Mount Songshan and the Great Wall receive chapter-length considerations (Chapters 3–5). Methodological elements from social sciences including history, art, law, sociology and ethnology are embedded in these discussions. This monograph is written in a way that juxtaposes the attitudes towards the world heritage craze in China and the relevant protection activities, with the social, cultural and political systems of wider society. At the end of the Introduction, Yan introduces the approach of neo-institutionalism, which is based on a traditional theory in economics, to discuss China's world heritage system and the world cultural model, and its related discursive system as well. It should be noted that neo-institutionalism sketches the process of ‘heritagisation’ within nation-states and the ‘politicisation’ of world heritage, and points out the constituent elements of the state's discursive power over not only cultural affairs but also political agendas.
Chapter 1 briefly introduces ‘Cultural relics’ and ‘Cultural heritage’ as the two core concepts in China's cultural conservation, and elaborates on the bureaucratic legal transformation from the former to the latter in great detail. The wording change—‘Heritage’ replaces ‘Relics’—represents a kind of discursive transition that is in accordance with international conventions and practices. Several living examples are given in this monograph to illustrate that the Chinese Government and the relevant functional departments have been making great efforts to meet the requirements of the world heritage programme and system. Through government intervention, the knowledge and the scripts of world heritage have re-shaped China's cultural conservation system. Yan concentrates on the unique discursive formation and transformation of China's heritage conservation in Chapter 1, providing general readers with a useful summary of the current situation of cultural heritage preservation in China.
Chapter 2 explores how the Chinese Government describes, translates, implements and utilises the UNESCO World Heritage scripts to present Chinese national solidarity and ethnic harmony, cultural inheritance and sustainable development. Yan offers his own understanding of world heritage at the end of this chapter: world heritage is an ethical issue rather than an aesthetic one. In light of this, readers could make a distinction between ethical elements and aesthetic value in the state's discursive construction of heritage preservation. From Chapters 3–5, Yan discusses three traditional Chinese heritage sites and the specific histories of each in achieving UNESCO World Cultural Heritage status. Carefully scouring the three chapters, readers should grasp Yan's real intentions. On the one hand, Fujian Tulou, Mount Songshan and the Great Wall as three particular Chinese heritage sites represent the Chinese ‘National culture’, and reflect the different ‘Local memory’. On the other hand, the three sites present the interaction between the Chinese discourse and the ‘Universal discourse’, which also shows the ‘Narrative transition’ in the international community.
As far as the Conclusion is concerned, Yan suggests that nation-states could obtain benefits from World Heritage Sites. They can acquire and legitimise their own cultural identity by making distinctions and gaining recognition from other nation-states. I agree with this to a certain extent. I think, however, that China's current attitude to heritage preservation not only represents a particular Chinese version of events, following the ‘Narrative transition’, but also expresses its discursive construction for heritage preservation. That is to say, it is not simply a Chinese version of history, but a Chinese version of heritage itself. A nation and its government can protect and nominate its own cultural heritage, but can also aim to lead the discourse by constructing a form of heritage value that suits its own ends and enables it to achieve the maximisation of self-interests.
World Heritage craze in China makes a unique contribution to Chinese heritage preservation, demonstrating the application and impact of the UNESCO World Cultural Heritage and the present state of the art in this area. Yan's research has implications for both Chinese heritage and world heritage, and gives new insights for the cultural sociologists who have tackled similar issues through empirical research before. This monograph challenges the reader and the profession to reconsider Chinese cultural heritage preservation, and its characteristics and relations with politics and society in China.
