Urban Social Restructuring and State Power Construction - An Analysis of Shanghai's State Power Construction in the Early Years of the PRC

Author: Guo Shengli
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-01-01
Features: Using Shanghai as the research subject, the book examines and analyzes the relationship between the construction of the state apparatus in the early period of the People's Republic of China and the transformation of urban social structures through original archival materials. The research field mainly consists of two parts: First, the process of Shanghai's transformation from numerous civilian social organizations to state-affiliated people's organizations, which changed the original dual administrative and social management system into a single administrative management system. Second, the establishment of the Lǐnghu (alleys) space from Bǎojiǎ (local administrative units) to the establishment of the Residents' Committees. In this process, the People's Republic of China not only constructed the urban social grassroots organizations—Residents' Committees—but also completely transformed the Lǐnghu space through the "class purification mechanism." Through the changes in these two fields, the book demonstrates the specific construction process of the state apparatus in urban society in the early period of the People's Republic of China, as well as its relationship with the reconstruction of urban society, exploring the historical logic of why this happened. The book, through the transformation of numerous civilian organizations in Shanghai into state-affiliated people's organizations and the establishment of Lǐnghu space from Bǎojiǎ to Residents' Committees, showcases the specific construction process of the state apparatus in urban society in the early period of the People's Republic of China and its relationship with the reconstruction of urban society.