Those familiar with Jerome Keating’s work, whether through his previous books or regular op-eds in the Taipei Times, will already know his political stance. He is very open about it, and Taiwan: The Struggle Gains Focus is very much about his opinions and ideas, especially his scathing distaste for the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), which he calls “Pigs-1” and “Pigs-2,” respectively, in one essay.
In another, he writes, “Those KMT who support the so-called 1992 consensus could consider moving to Kinmen and Matsu. From there, they could renew the ‘consensus’ with China and even continue to promote the idea of ‘one China with different interpretations.’”
There’s nothing wrong with that, since the book is honest and does not pretend to be what it’s not. Keating does acknowledge that there are those who don’t agree with him, but the bottom line is he will defend the nation’s democracy and sovereignty against those — including Taiwanese — who seek to undermine it for whatever reason.
Keating’s position is one that more people in Taiwan seem to share, as evidenced from recent polls and election results. A survey from earlier this month shows a record number of people identifying as Taiwanese rather than Chinese, and with China continuing to threaten Taiwan’s existence and vibrant democracy, this sentiment will only grow among the younger generation. Keating calls them “Generation D,” who grew up only knowing a democratic Taiwan and carry less baggage from its convoluted past.
Thus, it is a worthy exercise to examine Taiwan’s identity and internal struggles from this framework to provide ideas on how the nation can move forward. It’s evident that Keating deeply cares for Taiwan and is concerned about its future, and while his ideas may be overly idealistic at times, Taiwan: The Struggle Gains Focus is a well-intentioned and thought-provoking read for those with a vested interest in Taiwan.
The book takes on a casual, commentary style that espouses Keating’s views on a wide range of matters related to the theme, and although it introduces certain concepts that may require some academic knowledge, the prose is easily digestible as he peppers it with pop, literary and philosophical references.
While Keating does a concise and fairly accurate job at summarizing Taiwan’s history and recent politics within the first 50 pages (which is not an easy task), the nation’s past and present complexities are such that one will need some existing knowledge before tackling the book. But a reader likely wouldn’t pick it up otherwise. There was only one noticeable error: the Pingpu people are not a single tribe, but rather a collective term for several distinct indigenous groups that are fighting for government recognition.
Part I, “Taiwan’s Continuing Search for Identity,” is the most intriguing. It takes a deep look at the existing divisions in Taiwanese society that prevent its people from uniting and moving forward as a whole. What sets Taiwan apart from China, which claims that “we are all Chinese,” and how can its people develop a distinct but cohesive identity to counter such notions? He covers his bases and provides context in relation to Chinese history, which is needed to see the big picture especially since the book provides a crucial viewpoint that often gets drowned out by China’s propaganda.
Keating writes that the quest for identity includes examining and understanding Taiwan’s past, all the way back to the Austronesian expansion — something that even a significant portion of Taiwanese remain unclear about due to decades of colonizers steering the narrative to their favor. One point that stands out is Taiwan’s need for its own epic — namely, the “out of Taiwan” epic since the island is considered to be a key point of expansion for the Austronesian peoples who eventually spread as far as Madagascar and Hawaii.
The argument that Taiwan should embrace its Austronesian past to further distance itself from China is one that is often heard and sounds great on paper. But given the violent history between today’s majority Han Taiwanese settlers and the culturally marginalized Aborigines, as well as ongoing issues of discrimination and Han superiorirty today, it’s a loaded task even if 85 percent of Taiwanese today can claim some Aboriginal ancestry.
That said, those who have read Keating’s The Paradigms that Guide Our Lives and Drive Our Souls, or are familiar with his op-eds, should know that he has high hopes for humanity’s ability to one day set aside its differences, unite and see the world as a global home and themselves as a global race.
It’s a worthy goal to strive for, and the human race will go nowhere if it comprises entirely of pessimists. While the world is a mess right now, Taiwan remains one of its few beacons of progressiveness and democratic values despite its international isolation. Why not start here? Keating explores the nation’s place in the grand scheme of his paradigms through his essays in Part III.
The bulk of the remainder of the book is a collection of political essays that Keating has published in the Taipei Times over the past few years, covering a broad range of highly-relevant topics that all touch on Taiwanese identity as well as its past and future in relation to the world, especially China. This format seems a bit disjointed at first, but as one reads on, the arrangement of these sketches does make sense as they merge into a larger picture of the various concepts Keating tries to convey.
While they are well-written with clear viewpoints that provide valuable insight, the book can get repetitive because Keating espouses similar ideas in many pieces. For example, the phrase “Taiwan is a mid-sized nation...” appears at least 15 times.
The essays are meant to be viewed as individual pieces, but some general editing would have been helpful to streamline the read as a full-length book. Or one could just take their time with it because the format allows for flexible reading, completing a section at a time.
The book fully shows Keating’s passion for Taiwan, and anyone interested in the non-Beijing, non-KMT narrative of the nation but does not want to tackle an academic book should give it a read.
Taiwan’s overtaking of South Korea in GDP per capita is not a temporary anomaly, but the result of deeper structural problems in the South Korean economy says Chang Young-chul, the former CEO of Korea Asset Management Corp. Chang says that while it reflects Taiwan’s own gains, it also highlights weakening growth momentum in South Korea. As design and foundry capabilities become more important in the AI era, Seoul risks losing competitiveness if it relies too heavily on memory chips. IMF forecasts showing Taiwan widening its lead over South Korea have fueled debate in Seoul over memory chip dependence, industrial policy and
“China wants to unify with Taiwan at the lowest possible cost, and it currently believes that unification will become easier and less costly as time passes,” wrote Amanda Hsiao (蕭嫣然) and Bonnie Glaser in Foreign Affairs (“Why China Waits”) this month, describing how the People’s Republic of China (PRC) is playing the long game in its quest to seize Taiwan. This has been a favorite claim of many writers over the years, easy to argue because it is so trite. Very obviously, if the PRC isn’t attacking Taiwan, it is waiting. But for what? Hsiao and Glaser’s main point is trivial,
May 18 to May 24 Gathered on Yangtou Mountain (羊頭山) on Dec. 5, 1972, Taiwan’s hiking enthusiasts formally declared the formation of the “100 Peaks Club” (百岳俱樂部) and unveiled the final list of mountains. Famed mountaineer Lin Wen-an (林文安) led this effort for the Chinese Alpine Association (中華山岳協會). Working with other experienced climbers, he chose 100 peaks above 10,000 feet (3,048m) that featured triangulation points and varied in difficulty and character. The list sparked an alpine hiking craze, inspiring many to take up mountaineering and competing to “conquer” the summits. A common misconception is that the 100 Peaks represent Taiwan’s 100 tallest
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), alongside their smaller allies the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP), are often accused of acting on behalf of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Some go so far as to call them “traitors.” It is not hard to see why. They regularly pass legislation to stymie the normal functioning of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party’s (DPP) administration, and they have yet to pass this year’s annual budget. They slashed key elements of the government’s proposed NT$1.25 trillion (US$40 billion) special military budget, and in the smaller NT$780 billion package they did pass, it is riddled with provisions that
RSS