ABSTRACT
I had heard a lot about political campaigns during my residence in Lin Village. Based on what I learned from villagers, the very phrase “political campaign” conjured up mass rallies, public struggle sessions, and the use of brute force to carry out specific policies. Never in my wildest dreams did I expect to witness such a social drama unfold in real life, at least not during the last month of my stay in Lin Village. But then, unexpectedly, a campaign descended on the village and fundamentally changed the villagers’ way of life and family structure. This particular episode, a birth control campaign, although not as brutal as earlier ones described to me by the villagers, still tremendously impressed me because of its highly dramatic effect and intensity.
