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Overview"In the early twentieth century, a time of political fragmentation and social upheaval in China, poverty became the focus of an anguished national conversation about the future of the country. Investigating the lives of the urban poor in China during this critical era, Guilty of Indigence examines the solutions implemented by a nation attempting to deal with ""society's most fundamental problem."" Interweaving analysis of shifting social viewpoints, the evolution of poor relief institutions, and the lived experiences of the urban poor, Janet Chen explores the development of Chinese attitudes toward urban poverty and of policies intended for its alleviation. Chen concentrates on Beijing and Shanghai, two of China's most important cities, and she considers how various interventions carried a lasting influence. The advent of the workhouse, the denigration of the nonworking poor as ""social parasites,"" efforts to police homelessness and vagrancy--all had significant impact on the lives of people struggling to survive.Chen provides a crucially needed historical lens for understanding how beliefs about poverty intersected with shattering historical events, producing new welfare policies and institutions for the benefit of some, but to the detriment of others. Drawing on vast archival material, Guilty of Indigence deepens the historical perspective on poverty in China and reveals critical lessons about a still-pervasive social issue." Full Product DetailsAuthor: Janet Y. ChenPublisher: Princeton University Press Imprint: Princeton University Press Dimensions: Width: 15.20cm , Height: 3.80cm , Length: 23.50cm Weight: 0.567kg ISBN: 9780691152103ISBN 10: 0691152101 Pages: 320 Publication Date: 24 January 2012 Audience: College/higher education , Professional and scholarly , General/trade , Tertiary & Higher Education , Professional & Vocational Format: Hardback Publisher's Status: Active Availability: Temporarily unavailable  The supplier advises that this item is temporarily unavailable. It will be ordered for you and placed on backorder. Once it does come back in stock, we will ship it out to you. Language: English Table of Contents"Acknowledgments vii A Note on Conventions ix Introduction 1 Chapter 1: Between Charity and Punishment 13 Chapter 2: ""Parasites upon Society"" 46 Chapter 3: ""Living Ghosts"" during the Nanjing Decade 86 Chapter 4: Beggars or Refugees? 128 Chapter 5: Keeping Company with Ghosts 173 Epilogue 213 Notes 233 Glossary 279 Bibliography 283 Index 303"ReviewsThe book does a marvelous job of analyzing the discourse surrounding poverty in China. [I]t certainly belongs on the short list of pioneering studies ... that offer sophisticated analyses of the lives of illiterate, unprivileged men and women in Chinese cities in the decades before establishment of the People's Republic of China in 1949. -- Kristin Stapleton American Historical Review Author InformationJanet Y. Chen is assistant professor of history and East Asian Studies at Princeton University. Tab Content 6Author Website:Countries AvailableAll regions |
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