ABSTRACT
Nowfullyintothepost-Dengperiod,China'stransformingsocietyand socialstructurecontinuetoblurtheolddistinctionsbetweenruralandurban existence.ThereportsinthisvolumepointtoaChinawhichhaspermanentlyoutgrownitspeasantframeworkasaconcatenationofdemographic, economic,andsocialchangesscrambletheoldpatternsoftheChinese people'sagriculturalandrurallifeways.Therural-urbandualismwhich servedasastructuralbarriertourbanizationandwhichwasmaintained, ZhouDarningtellsus,bythehukouhouseholdregistrationsystem,bythe socialsecuritysystemwhichdeliveredbenefitstocity-dwellersonly,and bythelandsystemwhereinthestateownedurbanlandandthecollective ownedallruralland,isbreakingdown.Urbanization,andparticularlythe urbanizationof"rural"areas,isproceedingwithvigorthroughoutthesocietyandthroughoutmostofthecountry.
