Toward a new relational ontology in global politics: China’s rise as holographic transition

Chengxin Pan

doi:10.1093/irap/lcy010

Abstract

The theoretical challenges for international relations (IR) posed by China’s rise cannot be adequately addressed at a mere theoretical level. Predicated on a Cartesian/Newtonian ontology that assumes a mechanistic world made up of discrete, self-contained parts (e.g., sovereign nation-states), mainstream IR theories offer limited understanding of China’s rise. In this article, I propose an alternative, holographic relational ontology. Drawing upon recent IR scholarship on relational ontology and holographic ideas in quantum physics as well as traditional Asian thoughts, this ‘new’ ontology posits that the world exists fundamentally as holographic relations, in which a part is a microcosmic reflection of its larger whole(s). As a part of various wholes in global politics, ‘China’ is thus never an entity in and of itself, but holographic reflections of them. Its rise is best understood as a phenomenon of holographic transition, in which characteristics of those larger wholes are being enfolded into what is known as ‘China’. Thus, both the ‘China’ challenges and ‘China’ opportunities, rather than some inherently ‘Chinese’ properties, are products of China’s holographic relations. This ontology has broader conceptual and methodological as well as policy implications for IR in East Asia and beyond.

Highlights

The rise of China has posed a number of pressing questions: Can it rise peacefully? What does it mean for global governance and the rulesbased liberal order? Will it seek regional or even global dominance? And can it avoid the so-called Thucydides Trap? In the ongoing debate, at one level is an influential perspective informed by realism, and by offensive realism (Mearsheimer, 2001, 2010) and power transition theory (Organski, 1961; Organski and Kugler, 1980)
The basic starting point of this article is that the obstacle to better understanding China’s rise is not primarily theoretical or empirical, but ontological
Focusing almost exclusively on the implications of China’s rising power, the former fails to take into account its holographic transition in the contemporary world

Summary

Introduction

The rise of China has posed a number of pressing questions: Can it rise peacefully? What does it mean for global governance and the rulesbased liberal order? Will it seek regional or even global dominance? And can it avoid the so-called Thucydides Trap? In the ongoing debate, at one level is an influential perspective informed by realism, and by offensive realism (Mearsheimer, 2001, 2010) and power transition theory (Organski, 1961; Organski and Kugler, 1980). These perspectives argue that things and phenomena such as regions, states, sovereignty, anarchy, security, interests, identity, gender, and norms are not objective entities or objects out there, but socially constituted through language and discursive practice in (gendered) power relations (Ashley, 1988; Wendt, 1992; Peterson, 1992; Walker, 1993; Agnew, 1994; O Tuathail, 1996; Campbell, 1998; Dalby, 2003) Their contingent being cannot be understood outside of meaning, interpretation and discourse (Bleiker, 2002, 25). Going beyond these important ontological reflections, I explore a more specific relational ontology through holographic insights from both quantum physics and traditional Asian thoughts

The promise of a holographic relational ontology

China’s rise as holographic transition

Realist and liberal theorizing of China revisited

Findings

Conclusion