ABSTRACT
This chapter theoretically investigates modernity, Chinese modernity and Chinese architecture by placing the conceptualisation of Chinese modernity within globalisation, which is crucial to grasp the reconfiguration of social fragmentation within the big family and the autonomous forms of modernity in architecture. It also discusses the by-product of modernity and the arrival of the concept of individualism and calls for reconciliation between the subjectivity of architects according to their life experiences, the architecture they designed, and the general history of the structures in relation to production. In other words, working across the material and spiritual dimensions in tandem can better explain many seemingly absurd Chinese architectures and architectural activities. This chapter further opens inquiries on three crucial fallacies: “Is Money the Only Language?”, “Has China Forgotten Mao?” and “Do People Just Want to Be the Individuated Self?” and explains their relationships with the following three case studies: each case study will address one misconception, with supplementary references to combine issues that cannot be detangled, allowing us to reconsider alternative manifestations of modernity in China.
