Description
Book SynopsisThis unique and fascinating book explores three decades of economic change in China and the consequent transformation of class relations and class-consciousness in villages and in the urban workplace.
The expert contributors illustrate how the development of the urban economic environment has led to changes in the urban working class, through an exploration of the workplace experiences of rural migrant workers, and of the plight of the old working class in the state-owned sector. They address questions on the extent to which migrant workers have become a new working class, are absorbed into the old working class, or simply remain as migrant workers. Changes in class relations in villages in the urban periphery - where the urbanization drive and in-migration has lead to a new local politics of class differentiation - are also raised.
Presenting new, original field research detailing social and socio-economic change in China, this book will prove invaluable to scholars, researchers and postgraduate students with an interest in Asian studies, public policy, regional and urban studies, political science or sociology.
Contributors: J. Andreas, B. Carrillo, A. Chan, D.S.G Goodman, P.P. Leung, J. Linchuan Qiu, K. Siu, A.Y. So, L. Tomba, J. Unger, H. Wang
Trade Review'The strength of this thought provoking book is that each chapter combines theoretical reflections with penetrating empirical analysis, so it has a lot to offer anyone interested in social change in contemporary China.' --The China Journal
Table of ContentsContents: Preface Introduction: The Sociopolitical Challenge of Economic Change – Peasants and Workers in Transformation Beatriz Carrillo and David S.G. Goodman 1. Status Groups and Classes in a Chinese Village: From the Mao Era through Post-Mao Industrialization Jonathan Unger 2. Awakening the God of Earth: Land, Place and Class in Urbanizing Guangdong Luigi Tomba 3. The Making and Re-making of the Working Class in South China Parry P. Leung and Alvin Y. So 4. Chinese Migrant Workers: Factors Constraining the Emergence of Class Consciousness Anita Chan and Kaxton Siu 5. Industrial Restructuring and Class Transformation in China Joel Andreas 6. Working-class Cultural Spaces: Comparing the Old and the New Jack Linchuan Qiu and Hongzhe Wang Bibliography Index
