Catching Up with Published Authors #1- Elijah Han

Araneum is reaching out to authors who have published original research in our journals! We recently caught up with Elijah Han, who is preparing to pursue his Masters degree (and possibly a PhD!). Elijah’s article, “Carry the Revolution Until the End: The Role of Maoist Dialectics in Modern Chinese Politics,” was published in our Spring 2024 issue, and you can read his work here!

What was the inspiration for writing your article?

I was born in the Philippines as a second-generation Chinese immigrant, growing up in Manila while the Philippines and China duked it out over the South China Sea. Naturally, I became interested in Chinese politics and Asian geopolitics in general. During my second year at Richmond, I was torn on whether I wanted to specialize in Asian politics (or just generally political science) or political theory (the philosophy)—I was highly interested in philosophy but had to drop it for an Economics major. When the opportunity to be published in Araneum presented itself, I thought—why not combine both? That gave birth to my paper topic, using the philosophical dilemma of dialectics inherent in Maoist political theory to analyze how Communist Party rhetoric shifts and changes with policy. I realized I liked writing about political theory so much that I decided to stick with it for my honors thesis, and later for graduate school.

What are your plans after you graduate?

I am going to pursue a MSc in Political Theory at the London School of Economics and Political Science. Hopefully I’ll figure out during the year whether I plan to pursue a PhD in Politics afterwards or go to law school.

How has Araneum helped you in getting into your postgrad program?

Aside from good internships, one of the most important things PoliSci students could do to gain experience is to learn how to write well and get published. Polishing a prior paper into a full research article really honed my analysis and writing skills, especially on a topic—Chinese political theory—that I was very interested in at the time. The experience of writing for Araneum gave me enough confidence to tackle the Honors Thesis program my senior year, which I imagine did quite some heavy lifting for my postgraduate application. 

Can you talk about your experience with the publication process? What did you learn by going through it?

I was in the middle of my junior year abroad at the London School of Economics, so my experience with the publication process was fully remote—not exactly what my fellow writers went through. I submitted my first draft around the end of January that year, had my paper thoroughly peer-reviewed, then revised the draft according to the feedback they gave me. I remember being in Paris on top of the Arc de Triomphe in April that year when they launched the inaugural issue. Fun times.

I learned two things. Firstly, a good chunk of the challenge of writing is communicating effectively in as few words as possible. The revision process reminded me that it’s easy to get lost in long sentences or using “academic speak” without thinking about whether the reader would understand it. To this end, the peer review process was an excellent test for writing clarity. The reviewers are fantastic resources who bring their own knowledge to bear on your work, looking at it in ways you may never have considered before. It’s a great way to learn new perspectives on the topic.

Secondly, try not to be abroad when they throw the launch party.

Would you recommend Araneum to a friend? Why?

I would highly recommend Araneum. It’s a great way to contribute to the PoliSci department at Richmond and gain valuable writing and editorial experience in return. It’s also a foundation for later work, whether it be the honors program, submitting pieces to other academic journals, or your senior capstone papers. And with a view to the future: yes, it definitely looks good on your resumé, and yes, it definitely boosts your postgraduate applications.

What advice do you have for prospective writers and peer reviewers?

For prospective writers: whether it be retrofitting an old paper or writing a completely new one, make sure you like what you’re writing about. Choose a topic that interests you, one that you know you’d be willing to spend hours revising an old paper on. If you’re passionate about the topic, you’ve already won half the battle.

For peer reviewers: don’t feel daunted that the paper in front of you is on a topic you’ve probably never heard of in your life, or to which your area of study or expertise doesn’t seem relevant. You always have something to bring to the table. The increasingly interdisciplinary focus of Araneum reflects, in my opinion rightly so, the belief that we gain from encounters between students of political science, sociology, economics, anthropology, etc.