Albert Tzeng, William L. Richter and Ekaterina Koldunova, eds. Framing Asian Studies: Geopolitics and Institutions. Singapore: ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute, 2018, 289 pp.

• Main Author: Juliano, Hansley
• Format: text
• Published: Archīum Ateneo 2018
• Online Access: https://archium.ateneo.edu/socialtransformations/vol6/iss2/6; https://archium.ateneo.edu/context/socialtransformations/article/1099/viewcontent/ST_206.2_206_20Book_20review_20__20JULIANO.pdf
• Institution: Ateneo De Manila University

Excerpt: To presume to write the history of an entire discipline—particularly one as massive as Asian Studies—would be rightfully characterized as ambitious (if not even presumptuous). If only because of the real challenges Asia as a subject of study itself poses, attempting to characterize Asia by a “unifying” logic tends to be a frustrating (if not ultimately misguided) exercise. Hence, it is quite normal for books about the field of Asian Studies to specialize and segment specifically on which region of Asia the contributors to a volume focus on—if only to facilitate the multiplicity of questions and possible discursive concerns raised. Otherwise, a book may choose to go a bit more meta-textual and epistemological in its focus.