In the second half of the 19th century, Western powers dominated the world at will, while the various Asian cultures experienced their subjugation to white men as a catastrophe. The humiliations inflicted upon them by the West were numerous, and countless hearts and minds had resentfully endured European authority over their countries.

Today, Asian societies appear dynamic and self-assured. This was not the view of those who, during the 19th century, condemned them as "sick" and "dying" states.

How was this long metamorphosis of modern Asia possible? Who were its key thinkers and actors? How did they envision the world we live in and that future generations will inhabit? This book aims to answer these questions and offer a broad perspective on how some of the most intelligent and sensitive people in the East reacted to the abuses of the West in their societies. And by what paths have their ideas and sensibilities spread and evolved over time to give rise to the Asia we know today and its key figures, from the Chinese Communist Party, Indian nationalism, the Muslim Brotherhood, and Al-Qaeda to the technological and economic dynamism of Turkey, Korea, and Japan.

A fascinating book that presents to the Western reader the last two centuries of the intellectual history of those who were once the subjugated peoples of the world and who are now destined to become the most powerful nations on earth.