Colonial Project, National Game: A History of Baseball in Taiwan (Asia Pacific Modern Book 6)

In this engrossing cultural history of baseball in Taiwan, Andrew D. Morris traces the game’s social, ethnic, political, and cultural significance since its introduction on the island more than one hundred years ago. Introduced by the Japanese colonial government at the turn of the century, baseball was expected to "civilize" and modernize Taiwan’s Han Chinese and Austronesian Aborigine populations. After World War II, the game was tolerated as a remnant of Japanese culture and then strategically employed by the ruling Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Even as it was also enthroned by Taiwanese politicians, cultural producers, and citizens as their national game. In considering baseball’s cultural and historical implications, Morris deftly addresses a number of societal themes crucial to understanding modern Taiwan, the question of Chinese "reunification," and East Asia as a whole. Contents Acknowledgments Map of Taiwan Introduction 1. Baseball in Japanese Taiwan, 1895–1920s 2. Making racial Harmony in Taiwan Baseball, 1931–1945 3. Early Nationalist rule, 1945–1967: "There’s no Mandarin in baseball” 4. Team of Taiwan, long live the republic of China: Youth Baseball in Taiwan, 1968–1969 5. “Chinese” Baseball and its discontents, 1970s–1980s 6. Homu-Ran Batta: Professional Baseball in Taiwan, 1990–Present Conclusion: Baseball’s Second Century in Taiwan Appendix: Taiwanese Professional Baseball Teams and National Origin of Foreign Players Notes Glossary of Chinese, Japanese, and Taiwanese Terms and Names Selected Bibliography Index