Week 6 - Ushrayinee Sarker

Question: Soft power seems beneficial on the surface, but can you find instances, especially in the case of China, when it can be harmful for targeted countries of interest?

Culture, politics, and foreign policies. These three things are what define soft power. Soft power may seem like a good thing but to targeted countries of interest, it may be harmful. China is well known for scandals of homeopathic medicine, such as dried seahorse and black-market rhino horn. People claim that these goods have special powers, but this trade is frowned upon by many, giving China a negative image. Especially so with the rhino horn industry, given the way the horn is acquired.

Culture is important, without it there is no draw for tourism. Politics must be within an acceptable range, otherwise other countries will shun the given country.  Lastly, foreign policies have to be legitimate. With the illegal and unmoral industries in China, the foreign policies are very illegitimate, as mentioned above. In the end, the soft power is harmful, even for China.

Question: Can soft power be used properly, or is it by definition, faulty?

http://connect2conserve.org/the-resistance-demand-for-rhino-horns/

      Ding, Sheng. “Branding a Rising China: An Analysis of Beijing’s National Image Management in the Age of China’s Rise.” Journal of Asian and African Studies,  Apr. 2011