Globalisation and cultural protection in chinese cultural policy: a state and city analysis through cosmopolitan inquiry

Abstract

This thesis explores how cosmopolitanism theory can explain the interplay between globalisation and cultural protection in China’s cultural policy. It appliesinterpretive policy analysis and a case study approach, examining China’s Intangible Cultural Heritage(ICH) protection policy and its link to China’s broader ‘opening up’ strategy. The study engages with Appiah’s (2006) cosmopolitanism and Lukes’ (1974) power framework, and examines howcosmopolitanism explains the Chinese case. The thesis contributes by exploring the limits of cosmopolitan theory, the dual internal and external role of China’s ICH protection policy, and the interconnected dynamics of state and city-level policy. It highlights an Asian perspective on cultural policy research through dialogue with Western philosophy, and adopts a scholarlyperspective to analyse cultural policy as a case of governance practice.