New York Before Chinatown: Orientalism and the Shaping of American Culture, 1776-1882

by John Kuo Wei Tchen

Book Overview

From George Washington's desire (in the heat of the Revolutionary War) for a proper set of Chinese porcelains for afternoon tea, to the lives of Chinese-Irish couples in the 1830s, to the commercial success of Chang and Eng (the "Siamese Twins"), to rising fears of "heathen Chinee," New York before Chinatown offers a provocative look at the role Chinese people, things, and ideas played in the fashioning of American culture and politics. Piecing together...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0801867940
• ISBN13: 9780801867941
• Release Date: September 2001
• Publisher: Johns Hopkins University Press
• Length: 416 Pages
• Weight: 1.35 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 6.1" x 9.2"
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher