Kai Zhang

Email: albertk@pku.edu.cn

ORCID: 0009-0003-8991-2945


I am a Ph.D. candidate at the School of Government, Peking University and a visiting scholar at Harvard Kennedy School. My research interests lie in political theory and the history of political thought. My related publications in Chinese have appeared in CASS Journal of Political Science, Peking University Political Science Review, and The Journal of Yunnan University Social Sciences Edition. My doctoral dissertation examines Alexis de Tocqueville, liberalism, and the relationship between politics and religion. More broadly, my research interest is two-fold: first, tracing the ideas of liberty within the intellectual history of western political philosophy, particularly from the perspective of rationalisation of Weber and political theology of Schmitt; second, analysing the pathologies of modern society from the perspective of critical theory (mostly grounded in the tradition of Frankfurt School).

I am a huge fan of hiking. I also enjoy writing film reviews and playing videogames.

Education

2022.9– Ph.D. Student, School of Government, Peking University
2018.9–2022.7 BA, Politics and Public Administration, School of Government, Peking University
2025.8–2026.8 Visiting Ph.D. Student Fellow，Rajawali Institute for Asia Fellowship, Ash Center, Harvard Kennedy School

Languages

Chinese (native), English (fluent), French (proficient)

"Il m’y voilà tranquille au fond de l’abyîme."

Publications

  1. Demin Duan and Kai Zhang, “Colonial Expansion, Racism, and Democracy: Tocqueville’s ‘Another America’”, CASS Journal of Political Science, no. 6, 2023, pp. 161-174.
  2. Demin Duan and Kai Zhang, “The Problem of 'Perpetual Republic' in Machiavelli's Thought”, The Journal of Yunnan University Social Sciences Edition, no. 3, 2023, pp. 76-86.
  3. Kai Zhang and Demin Duan, “Disaster and Fortune from the Perspective of Political Realism: on Allison McQueen's Political Realism in Apocalyptic Times”, Peking University Political Science Review, vol. 14, 2023, pp. 253-263.

Conference Presentations

  1. “Political Virtues in Time: Machiavelli on ‘Perpetual Republic’”, December 9-10, 2023, 2023 Forum of Political Thoughts | The Tradition of “Mirror for Princes” in the History of Chinese and Foreign Political Thoughts, Peking University School of Government.
  2. “The Frontier of Democracy: Tocqueville on the Problem of Race in America”, April 6, 2025, the Fourth “State+” Forum — Academic Workshop on “Boundary/Frontier”, Yunnan, co-hosted by the Center for Chinese Political Studies at Peking University and the School of Politics and Public Administration at Yunnan Minzu University.
  3. "The Value of Authority in an Anti-Authoritarian Age: Tocqueville on Transcendent Faith and the Freedom of Moderns,” The 14th Beijing Youth Forum of Political Science, June 21–22, 2025, Beijing, University of International Business and Economics.
  4. Domination without a Dominator: Tocqueville on Political Pantheism and Democratic Despotism”, Annual Conference of Midwest Political Science Association, April 23, 2026, Chicago.

Teaching

Information about teaching will be updated soon.

Curriculum Vitae

A full version of my CV is available upon request, or you can download a brief version below:


[Download CV PDF]