Research on Rural Land Rights (1949-1983: A Case Study of Xinzhou County, Hubei Province)

Author: Huang Ronghua
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-06-01
Features: Research on the theory and practice of China's modernization must involve a comprehensive and systematic study of the transformation of China's rural society. The process of China's modernization, in essence, is a transition from traditional agrarian-pastoral civilization to modern industrial civilization, and the transformation of the rural society is undoubtedly a crucial component of this historical transformation of Chinese civilization. Why not name it directly "Modernization and Rural Society" but instead "Revolution and Rural Society"? This is because almost all major events experienced by China's rural society since modern times, and the earth-shaking changes in its social fabric, have been carried out under the banner of "revolution." This book further extends the examination of rural land tenure relations from the land reform period to the agricultural cooperation period, the commune period, and the period after the implementation of reform and opening-up. As research on the major facts affecting China's rural society during this period of revolution, it has extensively utilized original archives, a significant portion of which have been used by researchers for the first time. To supplement the shortcomings of written archives, they traveled to local areas to interview key figures, comparing and verifying oral historical records with written ones. To avoid the vagueness and brevity of grand narratives, they began their research with the study of a single county or region, striving to reveal the truth of history through case studies. In this book, readers can gain a more concrete and authentic understanding of the actual transformation of China's rural society under the leadership of the Communist Party of China from the late 1920s to the early 1950s and the subsequent period.