China’s Rise as an Advanced Technological Society and the Rise of Digital Orientalism

As China has risen as an advanced technological society, a new type of Orientalism—Digital Orientalism—has likewise emerged. Using historical materialism, this paper details these developments, including China’s change from a civilization-state to modern nation-state and its transition from a technical state to an advanced technological society, closing the technology gap that had left it vulnerable to foreign aggression and continued forms of international dominance and hegemony. It reviews and develops theories associated with technological societies, and how these relate to technophobia generally and the rise of Sino(techno)phobia specifically. It then theorizes three distinct but overlapping trends or themes in Orientalist depictions of China over the past two centuries: 1) ‘classical’ Orientalism, first theorized by Edward Said; 2) ‘Sinological Orientalism,’ described by Daniel Vukovich; and now 3), ‘Digital Orientalism,’ which was first introduced by Maximilian Mayer. This paper develops analyses associated primarily with the third theme, investigating contemporary developments in the context of China as a rising power and how scholars and other nations have responded in turn. It argues that China appears to have surpassed others now as a technological society, including the US, with China’s response to COVID-19 as a clear example, and with clear implications for China’s national advancement and global position vis-à-vis the United States particularly.