ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book illustrates the historical process of ethnic manipulation by dominant/subordinate groups and the ensuing dialogue of self and other that invariably occurs at local, national and international levels in the state building process. It focuses on the conflict between Chinese state culture and the cultures of minorities and also illustrates the institutionalization of self/other relationships by the dominant power. The book looks at the minority status of the Hua Miao and determines that because of their cultural “primitiveness” with regard to subsistence technologies, social organization, and religious beliefs, they have been considered “not ready to enter the industrial age” in China. It presents the case study of the ethnic diversity of Jews within Israel to illustrate how what is/is not to be included in the concept of a state-mandated sense of peoplehood is manipulated in the statebuilding process.
