Reflections on English as an Academic Subject in China

Abstract

This paper gives a brief examination of the history of English as an academic subject in China, focusing on the paramount importance China attaches to the teaching and learning of foreign languages in general and of English in particular. It is argued that China is probably the one and only case in human history in which an immense sovereign state puts systematic and sustained efforts into learning a foreign language, formulating unified linguistic policies and enforcing them in a consistent and potent manner; and by so doing, China has succeeded in making the external world translated and transparent to it in a short time, integrating all kinds of new knowledge into its cognitive system, broadening its horizon and transforming the minds of its population, thus effecting an overall civilizational metamorphosis.