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Women--Employment--China--Yangtze River, Women and socialism--China--Yangtze River, Silk industry--China--Yangtze River--History--20th century, Women silk industry workers--China--Yangtze River, and Work environment--China--Yangtze River

'Red Silk is a history of China's Yangzi Delta silk industry during the wars, crises, and revolutions of the mid-twentieth century. Based on extensive research in Chinese archives and focused on the 1950s, the book compares two very different groups of silk workers and their experiences in the revolution. Male silk weavers in Shanghai factories enjoyed close ties to the Communist party-state and benefited greatly from socialist policies after 1949. In contrast, workers in silk thread mills, or filatures, were mostly young women who lacked powerful organizations or ties to the revolutionary regime. For many filature workers, working conditions changed little after 1949 and politicized production campaigns added a new burden within the brutal and oppressive factory regime in place since the nineteenth century. Both groups of workers and their employers had to adapt to rapidly changing circumstances. Their actions—protests, petitions, bribery, tax evasion—compelled the party-state to adjust its policies, producing new challenges. The results, though initially positive for many, were ultimately disastrous. By the end of the 1950s, there was widespread conflict and deprivation among silk workers and, despite its impressive recovery under Communist rule, the industry faced a crisis worse than war and revolution.'

Revolutions and socialism--Soviet Union--History--20th century and Revolutions and socialism--China--History--20th century

China's ascent to the ranks of the world's second largest economic power has given its revolution a better image than that of its Russian counterpart. Yet the two have a great deal in common. Indeed, the Chinese revolution was a carbon copy of its predecessor, until Mao became aware, not so much of the failures of the Russian model, but of its inability to adapt to an overcrowded third-world country. Yet, instead of correcting that model, Mao decided to go further and faster in the same direction. The aftershock of an earthquake may be weaker, but the Great Leap Forward of 1958 in China was far more destructive than the Great Turn of 1929 in the Soviet Union. It was conceived with an idealistic end but failed to take all the possibilities into account. China's development only took off after—and thanks to—Mao's death, once the country turned its back on the revolution. Lucien Bianco's original comparative study highlights the similarities: the all-powerful bureaucracy; the over-exploitation of the peasantry, which triggered two of the worst famines of the 20th century; control over writers and artists; repression and labor camps. The comparison of Stalin and Mao that completes the picture, leads the author straight back to Lenin and he quotes the observation by a Chinese historian that, “If at all possible, it is best to avoid revolutions altogether.”

Socialism--China

The founding of the Communist Party of China (CPC) in 1921, the spread of Marxism, and the rise of the workers and peasants'movement provided a powerful organization and ideological basis for China to explore a new road to modernization. Relying on a mass movement supported by strong ideals, beliefs, and strict discipline, the CPC with Mao Zedong as the representative successfully opened a revolutionary'road'to reclaim the national power. From 1949 to 1976, great efforts were made to explore the road of socialism construction. During this time, China's modernization made great strides forward but also experienced some serious twists and turns. The experiences and lessons of this time period have provided valuable political material and ideological resources for the future. China has successfully found a different road to modernization from the Western countries and the Soviet Union, giving the'Chinese Road'great historical significance. This book takes an in-depth look at this fascinating history in Chinese politics. [Subject: Chinese Studies, Politics, Socialism]

Agriculture and state--China and Socialism--China

The first edition of'The Political Economy of Chinese Socialism'reconceptualized the political economy of China by highlighting the changing character of urban-rural and state-society conflicts in the era of Mao Zedong's leadership and in the contemporary post-Mao reforms. The economic and social crises that engulfed China - and indeed much of the rest of the socialist world - in the late 1980s, culminating in the 1989 democratic movement and its suppression, stimulated a rethinking of central propositions of the first edition. It particularly led the author to inquire anew into the meaning of socio-political as well as economic development in a populous and poor agrarian nation. This volume, then, assesses the economic performance and social consequences of China's political economy over four decades, with a focus on China's countryside and city-countryside relations. In addition to a reconceptualization and updating of the introductory chapter, there is a new chapter,'The Social Origins and Limits of the Chinese Democratic Movement'.

Utopian socialism--China--History

Throughout Nanjing's history, writers have claimed that its spectacular landscape of mountains and rivers imbued the city with “royal qi,” making it a place of great political significance. City of Virtues examines the ways a series of visionaries, drawing on past glories of the city, projected their ideologies onto Nanjing as they constructed buildings, performed rituals, and reworked the literary heritage of the city. More than an urban history of Nanjing from the late 18th century until 1911 — encompassing the Opium War, the Taiping occupation of the city, the rebuilding of the city by Zeng Guofan, and attempts to establish it as the capital of the Republic of China — this study shows how utopian visions of the cosmos shaped Nanjing's path through the turbulent 19th century.

Privatization--Social aspects--China--Congresses, Communism and individualism--China--Congresses, Socialism--China--Congresses, and Social ethics--China--Congresses

Everyday life in China is increasingly shaped by a novel mix of neoliberal and socialist elements, of individual choices and state objectives. This combination of self-determination and socialism from afar has incited profound changes in the ways individuals think and act in different spheres of society.Covering a vast range of daily life—from homeowner organizations and the users of Internet cafes to self-directed professionals and informed consumers—the essays in Privatizing China create a compelling picture of the burgeoning awareness of self-governing within the postsocialist context. The introduction by Aihwa Ong and Li Zhang presents assemblage as a concept for studying China as a unique postsocialist society created through interactions with global forms. The authors conduct their ethnographic fieldwork in a spectrum of domains—family, community, real estate, business, taxation, politics, labor, health, professions, religion, and consumption—that are infiltrated by new techniques of the self and yet also regulated by broader socialist norms. Privatizing China gives readers a grounded, fine-grained intimacy with the variety and complexity of everyday conduct in China's turbulent transformation.

Socialism--China

This book integrates the history of China's socialist ideology and socialist movement with the history of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and that of modern China. It offers an objective narration of major historical events and a vivid depiction of great personalities. The book covers the period spanning from the May 4th Movement of 1919 to the eve of the Cultural Revolution in 1965. Providing a broad historical perspective and sharp insights, it describes this period in detail, from the introduction of Marxism to China to the CPC integrating the theory with China's prevailing conditions and enriching it with Chinese characteristics, to the evolution and practice of scientific socialism in China. The Chinese Communists, represented by Mao Zedong, integrated the fundamental tenets of Marxism with China's prevailing conditions and revolutionary practices in order to create their own New Democracy Theory (that included both the new democratic revolution and the new democratic society), and to establish the People's Republic of China. The book's systematic review of a theory and path to build socialism in a country that was semi-colonial and semi-feudal, burdened with a backward economy and culture, acts as a mirror for today's governance and education. ••• Librarians: ebook available on ProQuest and EBSCO [Subject: History, Asian Studies, Chinese Studies, Politics]

Social structure--China and Socialism--China

This book examines the various social contradictions that sit at the heart of China's strategy of maintaining a harmonious socialist society while generating vertiginous economic growth. Edited by a senior member of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, the book discusses the roots and backgrounds of the key theories of contradiction, alongside the practical implications on modern-day China. The content is divided into two unique parts. The first section focuses on the contradictions among the people, while the second section examines the contradictions between different social groups and social classes. Systematic and wide-ranging, the book provides a clear understanding into China's perceptions and ideas of social contradiction theory. It will be particularly relevant to scholars in social sciences/socialism studies, Marxist theory studies, and Chinese/Asian studies. (Series: Philosophy in Modern China)

Labor unions and socialism--China and Labor unions--China--History

During the first decade of the twenty-first century, worker resistance in China increased rapidly despite the fact that certain segments of the state began moving in a pro-labor direction. In explaining this, Eli Friedman argues that the Chinese state has become hemmed in by an'insurgency trap'of its own devising and is thus unable to tame expansive worker unrest. Labor conflict in the process of capitalist industrialization is certainly not unique to China and indeed has appeared in a wide array of countries around the world. What is distinct in China, however, is the combination of postsocialist politics with rapid capitalist development.Other countries undergoing capitalist industrialization have incorporated relatively independent unions to tame labor conflict and channel insurgent workers into legal and rationalized modes of contention. In contrast, the Chinese state only allows for one union federation, the All China Federation of Trade Unions, over which it maintains tight control. Official unions have been unable to win recognition from workers, and wildcat strikes and other forms of disruption continue to be the most effective means for addressing workplace grievances. In support of this argument, Friedman offers evidence from Guangdong and Zhejiang provinces, where unions are experimenting with new initiatives, leadership models, and organizational forms.

Socialism--China--History

Gilbert Rozman examines the Soviet debate on Chinese socialism, revealing striking similarities between what Soviet scholars write about China and what they criticize as anticommunist'in Western writing on the Soviet Union.Originally published in 1985.The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

Protest movements--China--Beijing--History--20th century, Student movements--China--Beijing--History--20th century, Political violence--China--Beijing--History--20th century, and Socialism--China--20th century

Mao Zedong envisioned a great struggle to'wreak havoc under the heaven'when he launched the Cultural Revolution in 1966. But as radicalized Chinese youth rose up against Party officials, events quickly slipped from the government's grasp, and rebellion took on a life of its own. Turmoil became a reality in a way the Great Leader had not foreseen. The Cultural Revolution at the Margins recaptures these formative moments from the perspective of the disenfranchised and disobedient rebels Mao unleashed and later betrayed.The Cultural Revolution began as a'revolution from above,'and Mao had only a tenuous relationship with the Red Guard students and workers who responded to his call. Yet it was these young rebels at the grassroots who advanced the Cultural Revolution's more radical possibilities, Yiching Wu argues, and who not only acted for themselves but also transgressed Maoism by critically reflecting on broader issues concerning Chinese socialism. As China's state machinery broke down and the institutional foundations of the PRC were threatened, Mao resolved to suppress the crisis. Leaving out in the cold the very activists who had taken its transformative promise seriously, the Cultural Revolution devoured its children and exhausted its political energy.The mass demobilizations of 1968-69, Wu shows, were the starting point of a series of crisis-coping maneuvers to contain and neutralize dissent, producing immense changes in Chinese society a decade later.

Socialism in literature and Socialism--China

Against the dire consequences of China's market development, a new intellectual force of the New Left has come on the scene since the mid 1990s. New Left intellectuals debate the issues of social justice, distributive equality, markets, state intervention, the socialist legacy, and sustainable development. Against the neoliberal trends of free markets, liberal democracy, and consumerism, New Left critics launched a critique in hopes of seeking an alternative to global capitalism. This volume takes a comprehensive look at China's New Left in intellectual, cultural, and literary manifestations. The writers place the New Left within a global anti-hegemonic movement and the legacy of the Cold War. They discover grassroots literature that portrays the plight and resilience of the downtrodden and disadvantaged. With historical visions the writers also shed light on the present by drawing on the socialist past.

Socialism--China--Shaanxi Sheng, Socialism, Rural women--China--Shaanxi Sheng--Social conditions, Rural women--China--Shaanxi Sheng--Economic conditions, Women, and Rural population

What can we learn about the Chinese revolution by placing a doubly marginalized group—rural women—at the center of the inquiry? In this book, Gail Hershatter explores changes in the lives of seventy-two elderly women in rural Shaanxi province during the revolutionary decades of the 1950s and 1960s. Interweaving these women's life histories with insightful analysis, Hershatter shows how Party-state policy became local and personal, and how it affected women's agricultural work, domestic routines, activism, marriage, childbirth, and parenting—even their notions of virtue and respectability. The women narrate their pasts from the vantage point of the present and highlight their enduring virtues, important achievements, and most deeply harbored grievances. In showing what memories can tell us about gender as an axis of power, difference, and collectivity in 1950s rural China and the present, Hershatter powerfully examines the nature of socialism and how gender figured in its creation.

Social change--China--History--20th century, Socialism--China--History--20th century, Liberalism--China--History--20th century, and Conservatism--China--History--20th century

In the early twentieth century, China was on the brink of change. Different ideologies - those of radicalism, conservatism, liberalism, and social democracy - were much debated in political and intellectual circles. Whereas previous works have analyzed these trends in isolation, Edmund S. K. Fung shows how they related to one another and how intellectuals in China engaged according to their cultural and political persuasions. The author argues that it is this interrelatedness and interplay between different schools of thought that are central to the understanding of Chinese modernity, for many of the debates that began in the Republican era still resonate in China today. The book charts the development of these ideologies and explores the work and influence of the intellectuals who were associated with them. In its challenge to previous scholarship and the breadth of its approach, the book makes a major contribution to the study of Chinese political philosophy and intellectual history.