Description
Book SynopsisTrade ReviewDiamant's vivid and trenchant study offers a vital contribution to our understanding of the Chinese constitution as a political tool, both during the Mao era and today. It should be required reading for social scientists, legal scholars, and historians seeking to understand the interplay between state and society in the People's Republic, and the ways in which the Party-state is able to refashion key political instruments like state constitutions to better suit its needs.
* Journal of Chinese Political Science *
Diamant's provocative arguments, sharp prose style, and thoughtful close reading of previously unused historical documentation amply delivers on the promise of his book's arresting cover and transgressive title.
* The University of British Columbia *
Table of ContentsIntroduction: Constitutions, Legitimacy, and Interpreting Popular Commentary
1. Officials Read the Draft Constitution
2. The Draft Constitution in China's Business Community
3. Popular Constitutionalism
4. Reading about Rights and Obligations
5. Christians, Buddhists, and Ethnic Minorities
6. Constitutional Afterlives
Conclusion: The Meanings of the Constitution and Comparative Perspectives
