 2019 - 2020 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| 0687-2431-01 | Rural China: Political, Social and Economic Issues | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| FACULTY OF HUMANITIES | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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University credit hours: 2.0
Course description
“Building the villages” – political, social and economic issues in rural China
Throughout the entire history of China the majority of its population has resided in rural areas. For the rulers, the main concerns in rural life were tax collection and ensuring social stability; and urban-rural relations were very limited. The 20th century has witnessed significant changes in state’s relations with its rural areas and significant changes in the political, social, and economic life in rural China.
The aim of this course is to illuminate some of the most fundamental developments -- political, social and economic – which have molded rural life during the 20th and the first decade of the 21st centuries. Among the issues of concern in this course are: the development course of political and academic discourse around the notion of the
“rural”, the TVE’s and their consequences, elections and democracy, changes in rural households’ economy, rural migration into cities and the “floating” population, urbanization, and more. As we will see, some of these constitute serious challenges for the state to confront in the coming decades. The ability of the state to successfully meeting these challenges will strongly decide China’s strength and status in the future.
Throughout the entire history of China the majority of its population has resided in rural areas. For the rulers, the main concerns in rural life were tax collection and ensuring social stability; and urban-rural relations were very limited. The 20th century has witnessed significant changes in state’s relations with its rural areas and significant changes in the political, social, and economic life in rural China.
The aim of this course is to illuminate some of the most fundamental developments -- political, social and economic – which have molded rural life during the 20th and the first decade of the 21st centuries. Among the issues of concern in this course are: the development course of political and academic discourse around the notion of the
“rural”, the TVE’s and their consequences, elections and democracy, changes in rural households’ economy, rural migration into cities and the “floating” population, urbanization, and more. As we will see, some of these constitute serious challenges for the state to confront in the coming decades. The ability of the state to successfully meeting these challenges will strongly decide China’s strength and status in the future.