Revolution, Resistance, and Reform in Village China

Yale Agrarian Studies Series

by Edward Friedman, Mark Selden, Paul G. Pickowicz

Drawing on more than a quarter century of field and documentary research in rural North China, this book explores the contested relationship between village and state from the 1960s to the start of the twenty-first century. The authors provide a vivid portrait of how resilient villagers struggle to survive and prosper in the face of state power in two epochs of revolution and reform. Highlighting the importance of intra-rural resistance and rural-urban conflicts to Chinese politics and society in the Great Leap and Cultural Revolution, the authors go on to depict the dynamic changes that have transformed village China in the post-Mao era.  
 This book continues the dramatic story in the authors’ prizewinning Chinese Village, Socialist State .  Plumbing previously untapped sources, including interviews, archival materials, village records and unpublished memoirs, diaries and letters, the authors capture the struggles, pains and achievements of villagers across three generations of social upheaval. 

Genres: China, History

368 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2005

Reviews

[Dylan · Rating 3 out of 5]

If I had to describe this book in a sentence it would be precision without focus. While the authors are immensely detailed in narrating the three decade story of factional upheaval in the agrarian backyard of Beijing, often going into long digressions about the life trajectories of peripheral characters of Wugong village, for how much detail they provide the authors don't seem interested in telling one story in particular. The story (yes, story!) is told chronologically, filled with thick descriptions of daily village life. While most scholarly monographs lean towards a thematic interest (ex. Gender relations, state-society interaction, e.t.c.) this book wanders between many different subjects, attempting to give you a comprehensive view of their recent history. The writing should be praised for its concision though I think this book would have benefited from greater focus and organization so that readers can better digest the content. I'd rather know one thing pretty well than have a shallow idea of everything. Still, it's worth a read if you are doing a dissertation on China rural studies. It's also a great primer if you are looking to understand some of the major issues which plagued agrarian society during the tumultuous Mao years. Be warned, though, as what occurs in Hebei is not the same as what happened in rural areas much further away from Beijing. (See Dali Yang's book)

[Kllrchrd · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed the book, value it greatly but found it at times hard going, perhaps its above my head !! Its got detail which is what I wanted but I found myself getting lost, being unable to remember what the bigger picture was. It deals with a model village which itself went through hell, so how awful must it have been in other less priveliged places goodness knows. The 'getting lost' thing cld be easily remedied maybe with occasional asides/ bullet points to recap ... the book wld benefit from it.