ABSTRACT
The emergence of civil society as defined by Rousseau was readily apparent in China during spring 1989, especially after the inauguration of the student hunger strike in mid-May. The emergence of civil society in China was also reflected in the major breakdown of traditional social divisions as various groups asserted the collective good over their parochial interests. To the extent that civil society involves a conscious subordination of individual and group interests to the common good, the selflessness of the students was held up in great contrast to the self-serving actions of China’s political rulers. Rousseau's concept of civil society is a nebulous one, and he did not establish strict criteria for verifying its creation. The Social Contract was a prescriptive tract aimed at the French and other people who had not yet made their rightful claim to "citizen." In the spirit of the emerging civil society, worker propaganda stressed unity and national purpose over class and "trade union" interests.
