Acting out Democracy: Political Theater in Modern China, and: Protest in Beijing, and: The Tiananmen Tragedy: the State Society Relationship, Choices and Mechanism in Historical Perspective (review)

164 SAIS REVIEW account." Tibi argues that the superpowers "were able neither to prevent the outbreak of war nor to influence its course," a contention not supported by the record. As he himself notes, the willingness of the superpowers to supply thenclients with weapons was among the most "salient" factors in the conflict, as it enabled Egypt to conduct the War of Attrition and Israel to turn the tide in 1973. Tibi is not only concerned with the causes of wars, but with their outcome. Here too the book falls short. As he notes, the 1967 war brought about significant changes in the Middle East. He gives particular attention to the decline in Egypt's influence, and an increase in that ofthe oil producing states. Yet this is somewhat undercut when he quotes John Waterbury as writing that "the [economic] crisis that overtook Egypt in 1965-66. . .was exacerbated, but not caused, by Egypt's military defeat in 1967." If such is the case, then there likely would have been a power shift in any case. And while Tibi argues that the 1990-91 Gulf War was "the major event in the Middle East since the First World War," he provides little evidence for this contention, and much to indicate that not much has changed. Given that Tibi uses a systemic approach to the dynamic relationship between superpower patrons and regional clients, whose interests are not always constant, it is odd that this receives little elucidation in the historical description, which mainly relies on domestic political factors, the misperceptionor stupidity ofleaders, and mistakes or fate. Also odd is his identification ofvarious authors, at one point noting that an "American political scientist ... an American Jewess, disputes the thesis that Israel's interests are identical to those of the USA." To argue that American foreign policy makers had not thought through the possible "incompatibility " between support for Israel and US relations with the Arab world prior to 1967 is inaccurate, as is the contention that neither the Iraqi invasion of Iran nor the Israeli invasion of Lebanon were "strategically thought out acts based on a political concept. The issues raised in Conflict and War in the Middle East are important. Unfortunately , because the book is discursive, at times disorganized, and marred by inaccuracies, it neither contributes to our understanding of the dynamics of the Middle East, nor to how small states pursue their security, nor to the development of international relations theory. "Acting out Democracy: Political Theater in Modern China" by Joseph W. Esherick and Jeffrey N. Wasserstrom (The Journal ofAsian Studies, Vol. 49, No. 4, November 1990) pp.835-862. "Protest in Beijing"by David Strand [Problems ofCommunism, May-June 1990) pp. 1-19. "The Tiananmen Tragedy: the State Society Relationship, Choices and Mechanism in Historical Perspective," by Tsou Tang in Contemporary Chinese Politics in Historical Perspective, Brantley Womack, ed. (Cambridge University Press, 1991) pp. 265-327. Reviewed by Matthew S. Flynn, MA. Candidate, SAIS. As in the analysis of democratization of Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union, studies of the Democracy Movement China have focused on how the development BOOK REVIEWS 165 of"civil society" serves to challenge the monolithic state structure. The perspective common to the study of the democratization of socialist countries is that when the totalitarian state withdrew from its penetration ofsociety—either because ofshear exhaustion or due to economic reforms—a "public sphere" was created that allowed private interests to organize and challenge authoritarian rule. This avenue of inquiry continues to be extremely relevant as the world wonders whether civil society is vigorous enough either to protect its recently gained independence, as in Eastern Europe, or rebound from state suppression or in China. This review will examine three articles that use a historical perspective to profile the political actors ofthe Tiananmen massacre in a state-society framework. Twentieth-century China has experienced the rise ofa modern state, nation building , civil war, foreign occupation, and industrialization. All three authors use their knowledge of modern Chinese history to illuminate the present crisis. DavidStrand's "Protest in Beijing" echoes his earlierworkoncorporate interest groups in Beijing during the second and third decades ofthis century. In the May 4th, 1919 protests...