I’m obsessed with the idea of just how much our current global moment of transition resonates with the transition in ancient China from the Spring and Autumn period (770 to 476 BCE) to the Warring States period (475 to 221BCE).
More accurately, my obsession is with this recent essay from Noema by Shanghai-based Chinese scholar Hui Huang, from which I have gleaned pretty much all I know about ancie...
The strongest version of this narrative is its framing of the current global moment as a structural shift akin to ancient China’s transition from the Spring and Autumn to the Warring States period. The analogy is compelling: both eras saw the collapse of old norms, the rise of competitive statecraft, and the need for institutional innovation to survive. The essay’s emphasis on adaptability, technological dominance, and the tension between power and legitimacy offers a useful lens for understandi...