Understand China-U.S. Relation Through The Confucius Institute

The China-U.S. relationship is one of the most complicated bilateral relations in the world. The Confucius Institute is a non-profit organization aiming at teaching Chinese language and spreading Chinese culture. It was first established in 2004 and it has developed rapidly within ten years. At present, there are 100 Confucius Institutes and 356 Confucius Classes in the total in America. Through the Confucius Institute, the American public, especially US college students can easily learn Chinese and understand more about Chinese culture. It has promoted China-U.S. relations in political, economic, and cultural fields. The Confucius Institute has been widely considered as an important way to enhance China’s soft power. However, at the same time, some problems have been exposed in its operations in certain American college campuses. For example, the University of Chicago announced the closure of its Confucius Institute in 2014. It revealed that from an American perspective, the Confucius Institute is a threat to academic freedom in universities. China and the U.S. perceive the role of the Confucius Institute differently. It is this disparity of perceptions that has hampered the development of the Confucius Institute in America.This thesis concentrates on evaluating and comparing these different understandings between China and America. By analyzing soft power theories, I intend to explore the reasons that lead to this cognitive difference. Only in this way, can we explore the limits of China’s soft power and be able to figure out solutions that ease the controversy surrounding the Confucius Institute in America. In the end, I believe that the Confucius Institute can overcome the difficulties and this will help to increase China’s soft power in America. Above all, it will helps to foster a deeper China-U.S. relationship. In this thesis, I will analyze the Confucius Institute’s contributions to promote China-U.S. relations, systematically examine the difficulties that the Institute has met in American universities in the past year, and seek solutions that will enhance Chinese soft power, and to promote friendly relations between China and the U.S..