[From the syllabus] "In the world of business and economics," according to the authors of the main text for this class, "the empirical phenomenon of the decade [of the 1990s] clearly has been the remarkable growth and development of Asian nations into world-class economic powers, particularly the Northeast Asian economies of Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan ….These countries have emerged from an array of political and social challenges that include world and civil wars, massive migration, external occupation and colonization, and substantial destruction of their economic capacities to become, in little more than a generation, extraordinarily successful players in the world economy" (pp. 3-4). The obvious question is, "How did this happen?" There are, not surprisingly, dozens of explanations—not all of which are compatible. One objective of this class, therefore, is simply to introduce you to and help you to understand competing accounts of the "East Asian miracle." Knowing how others have interpreted the rapid rise of East Asia, however, is only a beginning. It is also important for you to develop your own independent capacity to analyze and interpret the process of capitalist development. For questions about the process and implications of capitalist development—in all its varied forms—remain as relevant today as they have ever been. What sorts of policies can most effectively promote growth in developing countries? What is the "best" or most efficacious relationship between governments and markets? Can or must states contribute to capitalist growth and development? What is the "proper" role of free markets at the local, national, regional, and transnational levels? What is the relationship between capitalism and democracy? Is economic individualism the only valid basis for achieving economic development?

The premise of this class is that none of these critical questions can be adequately answered without substantial knowledge and understanding of the political and economic dynamics of East Asian capitalism. Indeed, such knowledge and understanding may well be indispensable to a sound grasp of the contemporary world.