Description
Book SynopsisIn focusing on China's social survey movement, this title analyzes how information generated by a range of research practices - census, sociological investigation, and ethnography - was mobilized by competing political factions to imagine, manage, and remake the nation.
Trade Review"A rich and focused work that will appeal to anyone interested in the ways that the concept of the modern nation is shaped by the histories of science, soulstealing, society, and sentiment." New Bks In East Asian Stds "Tong Lam's rich and provocative [study] should be of interest to all scholars of China." -- Sigrid Schmalzer American Historical Review "Readers will find A Passion for Facts compellingly written, thoroughly researched, and thought-provoking." -- Maggie Clinton, Middlebury College The China Beat "[A] rich, persuasive study." -- Robert Culp Cross-Currents "Ingenious... Scholars of China as well as scholars outside that field will find much of interest in [Lam's] book." -- Q. Edward Wang Journal of Interdisciplinary History "[A] rich and sensitive exploration of social knowledge production in modern China... Lam's intensive and engaging book ... inspires readers to think of more questions and thus opens more topics for future research." -- Yu-ling Huang East Asian Science, Technology and Society "This is an important book. It is well researched, concisely written, and intellectually ambitious... Lam's excellent book deserves to be widely read." -- Fati Fan The Journal of Asian Studies "An engaging study... It is a major contribution to our understanding of the multifarious processes of nationbuilding." -- Jennifer E. Altehenger The China Quarterly
Table of ContentsList of Illustrations Acknowledgments Introduction 1. The Rise of the Fact and the Reimagining of China 2. From Divide and Rule to Combine and Count 3. Foolish People versus Soulstealers 4. The Nationalization of Facts and the Affective State 5. Time, Space, and State Effect 6. China as a Social Laboratory Epilogue Notes Glossary Bibliography Index
