ABSTRACT
the urban West, it is easy to forget that most of the world's population still lives in villages, and despite increasing globalization it remains true that many countries can best be understood on the village level. The most striking example is China where, in the face of the political and economic upheavals of the last century, the local village units and networks retain their importance. Written during the last days of Imperial China, this pioneering study is remarkable for its detailed descriptions and the freshness of its observations, which are applicable today despite the veneer of modernity. Every facet and institution of village life is revealed - local officials, cooperative loan societies, crop watching societies, the tradition of rigorous instruction, the dedication of men and women to labour from childhood, the drudgery of family life.What emerges clearly is what Smith calls the 'Chinese talent for cooperation' - the embedded predisposition for acting in groups - which Chairman Mao used to great advantage, has outlived the Maoist movement, and is the foundation on which the new China is being built. This unique study is essential reading for those interested in China's history and its future.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
part |222 pages
PART I The Village, Its Institutions, Usages and Public Characters
chapter |5 pages
The chinese village
chapter |10 pages
II Construction of villages
chapter |5 pages
III Village nomenclature
chapter |4 pages
IV Country roads
chapter |5 pages
V The village ferry
chapter |5 pages
VI Village wells
chapter |5 pages
VII The village shop
chapter |16 pages
VIII The village theatre
chapter |40 pages
IX Village schools and travelling scholars
chapter |5 pages
XI Village temples and religious societies
chapter |5 pages
XII Coöperation in religious observances
chapter |6 pages
XIII Coöperation in markets and fairs
chapter |9 pages
XIV Coöperative loan societies
chapter |8 pages
XV Societies for watching the crops
chapter |5 pages
XVI Village and city rain-making
chapter |5 pages
XVII The village hunt
chapter |17 pages
XVIII Village weddings and funerals
chapter |15 pages
XIX New year in chinese villages
chapter |15 pages
XX The village bully
chapter |9 pages
XXI Village headmen
part |104 pages
PART II Village Family Life
chapter |21 pages
XXII Village boys and men
chapter |54 pages
XXIII Chinese country girls and women
chapter |5 pages
XXIV The monotony and vacuity of village life
chapter |7 pages
XXVI Unstable equilibrium of the chinese family
chapter |15 pages
XXVI Instability from family disunity
part |14 pages
PART III Regeneration of the Chinese Village