Cultural power in the space of political economy: A case study of China`s cultural import into lithuania

Abstract

This paper examines the role of the Chinese cultural production in political economy, putting some emphasis to the market aspects of culture as well as the political outcomes. \r\nThe hypothesis of the paper is based on the assumption that culture is one of the main resources of soft power. Therefore, the spread of the well-favored culture through cultural trade should create an attractive image of a country represented by that culture. A specific case study of China’s cultural imports into Lithuania is provided to serve as an example to reveal this relation of politics-economics-culture and to prove that cultural interaction can influence opinion about the whole cultural group thus increasing its power.\r\nThis qualitative research was conducted first of all reviewing theoretical literature on the relevant topics of political economy, culture and soft power (Chapter 2). Then a number of a recent primary data from the United Nations reports as well as the other academic and media sources was analyzed in order to establish the role of China’s cultural production in the world market, which clearly demonstrates that China is already proving the success of its cultural industries becoming the largest producer and exporter of cultural products in the world (Chapter 3). Finally, the case study, which included analysis of primary imports data, review of the Chinese services and activities in Lithuania and 25 in-depth semi-structural interviews, proved that China’s cultural products imports into Lithuania is a subsistent part of the trade market and is constantly growing since 2003 along with the cultural services proliferation. The interviews presented some insightful opinions about Chinese cultural production, Chinese culture and China in general (Chapter 4).