Last and First Men · Character

The Chinese

A proudly nationalistic people who purge foreign culture from their schools while living, thinking, and consuming in thoroughly American ways.

supporting

Also known as Chinese, the Chinese, The Chinese, the more old-fashioned Chinese

First appearance: America and China

As a supporting figure in Last and First Men, The Chinese is not background color—the story leans on what they do once the chapter opens.

Mobilize forces and remain in the League of Nations, hoping to use it against America.

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Rising against American economic and cultural dominance, the Chinese revive pigtails, chopsticks, and the classics, yet their alphabet, slang, screens, and even metaphysics remain Mongolian variants of American thought. Their nationalism is real but superficial, a contradiction they cannot quite resolve. In the story's middle arc they embody the era's central irony: a rival power whose resistance to Americanism is itself conducted in American forms.

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Character Web

21 connections

A slice of how The Chinese sits in the book — open the reader for the full interactive map.

Relationship types

Other

Character groups

Earth's Human Succession
Nations, Concepts, and Later Humans
Protagonist

+16 more in the full Character Web

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Narrative arc

Story tension across the book — this chapter sits in Exposition.

Setup
Escalation
Breaking point
Aftermath
Closing

The emotional peak occurs when the Fifth Men, having achieved profound self-awareness and intimacy over millen…

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In the story

The Chinese appears across 10 companion beats. Open any chapter in the free preview to see the notes beside the text.

IV: The Russo-German War
Mobilize forces and remain in the League of Nations, hoping to use it against America.
II: Europe's Downfall
The scientist who created the weapon and destroyed it, then took his own life.
I: Europe and America
China, half American, largely Russian, and wholly Eastern, improves its lands and industries while learning from militant Bolshevism.
II: The Origins of a Mystery
The Chinese scientists are mentioned as being respected by the meeting, and the young physicist is one of them.
III: Europe Murdered
Mentioned as the source of the scientist whose act triggered the war, though not directly present.
America and China
The Chinese are depicted as bland, dispassionate, and valuing rest and peace of mind, yet corrupted by American influence and fear.
The Rivals
The Chinese mentality is portrayed as bland, artistic, classical, and rationalistic, valuing appearances and peace of mind over action.
The Conflict
The Chinese, fearing Americanization, demand control of Antarctic fuel and resist American moral intervention, leading to war and eventual occupation of Europe.
I: The Foundation of the First World State
The Chinese are involved in the transition, experiencing 'American madness' and later developing the Energist movement.
V: Downfall
Chinese agriculturists strike for power and are killed by Gordelpus's 'evil atmosphere'; later, China declares itself a free national state.

Chapter companion notes

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