Jiangnan Gentry and Jiangnan Society (1368-1911)

Author: Xu Maoming
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-12-01
Features: Under the guidance of senior experts and scholars such as Cheng Yingmiao, Zhang Jiaju, and Wei Jianyou, the Department of History at Shanghai Normal University has achieved remarkable accomplishments over the past half century, forming a style of pragmatism and innovation. On one hand, it focuses on cultivating solid historical foundations, while on the other hand, it emphasizes enhancing innovative awareness, leveraging strengths and overcoming weaknesses, and occupying the forefront of academia. Currently, the department boasts two doctoral programs and a postdoctoral research station. In 1982, the discipline of Modern Chinese History began admitting master's students. In 1994, the Institute of Modern Chinese Society was established based on the existing Research Room of Modern Chinese History. In 2000, the doctoral program in Modern Chinese History was approved by the State Council Academic Degrees Office, and in 2001, the Research Center of Modern Chinese Society was established on the basis of the institute, which was also recognized as a key discipline by the Shanghai Municipal Education Commission in the same year. The academic leader is Professor Tang Lifeng. Currently, the discipline is divided into three directions: regional socio-economic research, social problems and social change, and lower-class society and secret society research. The respective leaders of these directions are Tang Lifeng, Su Zhiliang, and Zhou Yumin. The Department of Modern Chinese History at Shanghai Normal University, with the study of Chinese society in transition as its core, has formed the following four characteristics:
1. Combining Whole China and Regional Society Research: Regional history is a new trend in international historiography. The Jiangnan region (including Shanghai and Huizhou) that we focus on is a distinctive area with characteristics of social transformation. Regional society is part of the whole China and its cellular form. Analyzing a representative regional society itself helps deepen our understanding of the whole China. Moreover, lower-class people live in specific regional societies, so we must adopt a downward perspective, focusing on the social life, organizational structures, religious beliefs, traditional culture, and their relationships with major social changes of lower-class people in history. Reconstructing the actual state of social life is inseparable from regional history research. For example, the social realities constructed by regional studies such as Jiangnan Confucian Merchants and Jiangnan Society, Regional Socio-economic Research of Huizhou since the Ming and Qing Dynasties, The Dual Symphony of Merchants and Culture—A Historical Examination of Huizhou Merchants and Clan Society, Research on the Black Society in Modern Shanghai, and Research on the Black Society in Old Shanghai all contribute to a deeper understanding of the whole China. When conducting whole China research, we also make full use of regional materials to achieve a balance between macro and micro perspectives, such as in Merchants and Modern Chinese Society, History of Chinese Secret Societies, and Chinese Secret Societies.
2. Combining Long and Short Timeframes: We believe that the emergence of capitalism in the 16th century marks the beginning of the transformation of traditional Chinese society. Whether studying regional society, secret societies, or modern social problems or intellectuals, it is essential not to confine the analysis to the 100 years of rapid social change after 1840. Instead, we should place the short-term rapid social changes within the longer timeframe of the transformation from traditional agrarian society to modern society to gain depth and rigor in research. Therefore, we have moved beyond examining social changes solely after the Opium War in 1840 and proposed the concept of "Modern Chinese Society since the Ming and Qing Dynasties," stepping out of modern history and returning to it. For instance, Merchants and Modern Chinese Society. Similarly, the study of regional socio-economic changes in modern China extends to the social and economic transformations in the Jiangnan region since the Ming and Qing Dynasties, revealing the historical continuity and of socio-economic transformation in the Jiangnan region since the Opium War. The study of lower-class society in modern China begins with the formation of the floating population in the early Qing Dynasty and further examines the changes in the organization of the floating population after the Opium War. Research on folk secret societies traces back to even earlier historical periods. The study of social problems and social change, such as drug issues, has been traced back to the initial introduction of opium into China. The study of intellectuals extends to the present day. Even for specific research on a shorter, specific timeframe, such as History of the Shanghai Xiaodao Society Uprising and History of the Nian Army Uprising, they are positioned within the broader framework of historical change.
3. Combining Upper-Class and Lower-Class Society Research: Traditional historiography has been limited to the upper class, excluding the lower class from research. The lower class is the subject of history and a crucial aspect of social history. What was the basic state of the lower class in the long historical period, and what was their reality during major social changes? How did they interact with society? These studies hold significant implications for today. The lower class, including peasants, urbanites, and the floating population, as well as their organizations such as families, clans, secret societies, bandits, and religious groups, and social issues like drug use and prostitution, are all closely related to the transformation of the lower class. Intellectuals and merchants, who are connected to the lower class and frequently engage in upper-class activities or directly belong to it, can reveal the full picture of modern Chinese social change and the differentiation, reorganization, and mentalities of various social groups during the transition period through the study of these groups.
4. Paying Attention to Innovation in Historical Theory and Methodology: The study of society in transition is an interdisciplinary research topic. In our research, we attempt to introduce new theories and employ interdisciplinary methods to deepen our understanding. For example, regional socio-economic research does not merely discuss economic history in isolation but takes merchants as a specific social group as the entry point, exploring the interaction between economic and social development from aspects such as family systems, merchant organizations, and commercial spirit, transforming economic activities into the living activities of people. In the study of floating populations and secret societies, we do not simply list the important activities of secret societies in different periods but consider both their commonalities and the profound influence of regional characteristics on the unique features of secret societies in different areas. In the study of intellectuals, while grasping the general development of modern thought, we pay more attention to their individual characteristics. Under the guidance of Marxist historical theory and methodology, we fully absorb and apply regional research methods, sociology, political science, genealogy, psychology, and other research methods, broadening our research paths and continuously innovating.
Based on long-term historical research practices, we not only focus on the inheritance and innovation of historical methods but also cultivate a rigorous and solid academic style, starting with the most fundamental historical materials. Regional socio-economic research with merchants as the entry point, lower-class society research with floating populations and secret societies as the entry point, and the study of modern social issues and intellectuals all lack existing systematic historical materials. Most of the work is original and requires starting from the most fundamental historical materials. We have compiled works such as Selected Materials on Huizhou Merchants since the Ming and Qing Dynasties and Epigraphical Collection of Social History of Suzhou since the Ming and Qing Dynasties. The formation of each professional direction has almost gone through ten years of accumulation, with some even involving two or three generations. Many of our academic achievements have been widely cited and welcomed by domestic and international scholars. In recent years, the colleagues of the Research Center of Modern Chinese Society have worked diligently, producing numerous outstanding results and continuing to develop the research characteristics we have formed over the years.
To strengthen academic exchanges with domestic and international historiography, with the strong support of the Shanghai Municipal Education Commission and Commercial Press, we plan to publish the "Series of Research on Modern Chinese Society," gradually introducing the achievements of our colleagues. We hope that our work can add a touch of spring to the field of historiography.