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Emperor and Ancestor: State and Lineage in South China (review)

Emperor and Ancestor: State and Lineage in South China (review) 50 ChinaReviewInternational:Vol.18,No.1,2011 c ontemporaryIndianart,both inIndiaandabroad,wouldhavebeenawelcome addition.Suchshiftsandredirectionswillcontinueandtheirimpactis unknowable,butawarenessofthepast,asprovidedbytheseessays,isanimportantguidetoanticipatingchange.Anotherissueimportanttothestudy,which was notaddressedinthisseriesofessays,istheinternetasamediumofthe exchangeofknowledgeandculturalandpersonalinteraction,andasamarketplace.Nearlyallworkingartistshavewebsites,asdomuseumsandgalleries.Local andinternationalweb-orientedformsofcommunicationproliferate,allowingfor continuousinteraction,regardlessofthetimezoneorgeographicallocationofthe surfer. PatriciaKaretzky Patricia Karetzky occupies the O. Munsterberg Chair of Asian Art at Bard College. She was editor of the JournalofChineseReligions and has written books on Chinese medieval art and has both curated many exhibits on Chinese Contemporary art and written numerous articles on the subject. DavidFaure.Emperor and Ancestor: State and Lineage in South China. Stanford,CA:StanfordUniversityPress,2007.464pp.Hardcover$50.00, isbn978-0-804-75318-0. DavidFaure'sbookisworthyofmorethanonereading.Basedontwentyyearsof fieldwork,FauretellsastoryofhowthecentralgovernmentinMing-QingChina interactedwiththegovernedthroughasocialinstitution:thelineage.Faure's researchonlineagesinSouthChinachallengesscholars'conventionalunderstandingoflineageasanaturalexistence,asatoolofstatecontrol,andasabackward remnantfromfeudalsociety. Whiletheformerunderstandingoflineageasanaturalexistencewascentered onpeoplewhosharedcommonancestorsandweretiedbyblood,Faure identifiesseveralimportanthistoricalmomentswhenlineagewassocially onstructed.FocusingonFoshan,acommercialandindustrialtownwestof c GuangzhouinSouthChina,andbasedonalargeamountoflanddeeds,contracts, andgene logies,Fauredepictsthevicissitudesoflineagessincethefifa teenth century.TheHuangXiaoyanguprisingin1449toreaparttheformer social fabricandsubugatedminorities,suchastheYaoandtheZhuangpeople, j forcingthemtoentertheadministrativecommunityandregisterascivilian (min) householdswithouttracingtheirorigins.In1521,theJiajingemperorof © 2012 by University of Hawai`i Press Reviews 51 the Mingdynastymadeasacrificetohisancestors,establishingarolemodelfor thelocalsocietytofollow.Sacrificingtoancestorswasnolongerlimitedtothe emperorandthearistocracy.ThelineageinSouthChinabasedonthelijiasystem wasassociatedhighlywithtaxpayment.TheSingleWhipReforminthelateMing dynastymadethecorveeserviceobsolete.Insteadofprovidingservicestothe Mingstatetosatisfytaxrequirements,lineageswereabletousesilvertopaytheir taxes.Thischangenotonlymonetizedthemarket,butalsoencouragedsingle householdstoformlineages.InMing-QingChina,asFaurepointsout,imperial ideologysoughttolinkthestatetosocietyrituallyandfinancially,andthelineage servedasoneofthemostimportantwaysforstatepowertoreachdowninto society. Lineagesweredevelopedthroughimperialpolicy,socialunrest,apoolingof resources,andritualpractice.However,lineageswerenotunderdirectcontrolby thestate.FaurecontributestotheunderstandingofstatecontrolofMing-Qing societybyillustratingtheintegrationoflocalsocietytothestate.Faurearguesthat "theimperialgovernmentdoesnotappearasanoverarchingauthorityimposing itswillonlocalsociety,asitoftenclaimedinstudiesofthe lijia"(p.74).Faure's local-staterelationshipwascontractualinsomesense.Bypracticingcommon ritualsandsacrificingtostate-sanctioneddeities,lineagesweregrantedlegal implicationstoritualrules,suchastherulesofdescent,andweregrantedtitlesto landholding.Moreover,increasingnumbersoflineagememberswereadmitted intoofficialdomviatheimperialexaminationandthegrowingwealthinthePearl RiverDelta,thusgainingpowerwithinthelineage.Therefore,byadoptingstate rituals,lineagesgainedthelegitimacyoflocalpowerandobtainedlegalautonomy, tosomeextent. Thefactthatlineagememberswerelinkedtogetherbyritualpracticewas moresignificantthanmereintegrationtothestate.AsFaureelaborates,with Neo-Confucianismasacentralizedideology,theorthodoxritualthatitcreated, andabureaucracythatgrantedpowerthroughexaminationregardlessoftheir participants'origins,thestateattachedasenseofmembershiptothelijiasystem. The lijiaregistrationwasnolongeranemptypolicythatwasdesignedfortax paymentintheearlyMing,butwasstronglyconstructedonacommonbelief. In thissense,FaurefurthersuggeststhattheMingEmpiremightbe"oneof the world'sfirstnation-states"(p.368).Builtonasharedbeliefandcommon ritual practice,MingChinawasassophisticatedasanineteenth-century nation-state. InFaure'scomprehensivenarrative,manyreadersmightfindthereevaluation oflineageasapowerfulsocialorganizationmostexciting.Previousscholarship thatalliedwiththeintellectualdiscourseduringtheMayFourthMovementinthe earlytwentiethcenturycriticizedlineagesformaintainingfamilyhierarchyand deprivingindividuallineagememberoffreedom.Thisdoesnotseemtobethe caseinFaure'sPearlRiverDelta.Economically,landholdingfacilitatedtheraising 52 ChinaReviewInternational:Vol.18,No.1,2011 ofsharedcapitalandexpansionofinvestment.Withouttheinterventionofstate power,thegentryestablisheditsleadershipthroughreligion,contracts,business investments,andciviladministration(p.214).DuringtheTaipingRebellionand OpiumWarsinthenineteenthcentury,thecentralstateevenreliedonlinage militiastoprotectthearea.Mostimportant,througheconomicandmilitary influence,localleaderswereabletorepresenttheircommunityinterestsand bargainedfortaxreductionwiththestate. Portrayingthelineageasamoderncorporation,Fauresuccessfullyengages in therecentdebateaboutcivilsocietyinChina.Byfocusingontheemergenceof guildsandcharitablehallsinthelatenineteenthcentury,previousscholarstried to arguethattherewasacivilsocietyinChinaandthatpublicspacedidexistin cities.ReadingFaure'slineages,whichheldlands,ownedarmfires,donatedfunds forpublicfacilities,and,mostimportant,wereabletorepresentcommunity interestsandnegotiatewiththestate,onefindsthatMing-QingChinawasnoless acivilsocietythanitsWesterncounterparts.Furthermore,thelineagewasnoless apublicspacethanguildsandcharitablehallsattheendoftheQing.Byfocusing onlineagesthatdevelopedmainlyintownsandinthecountrysideofthePearl RiverDeltaandwereprosperousforseveralhundredyears,Faurerectifiesthebias thatcivilsocietyonlyevolvedinurbanspaceandcamewithurbanizationand urbanidentities. Faure'sstatementaboutcivilsocietyinSouthChinaduringtheMing-Qing periodonceagainquestionsthediscourseofthelineageasabackwardremnant. AlthoughthelineagehadlostitspopularityinChinawhentheQingended, whetherpeoplehavebenefitedfrombeingorganizedasindividualcitizensinstead oflineagemembersishardtodetermine.Asindividualcitizens,peopleafter1911 didnothavetoobeylineagerulesbut,atthesametime,losttheiropportunityto grouptogetherpowerfullyaslineagetonegotiatewiththestate. AsummaryofFaure'smainideasisstraightforward,buttheworkitselfis amazinglyrichindetails.Ononelevel,thisworkinteractswithvariousdisciplines: regionalstudy,economichistory,andanthropology.Onanotherlevel,the bookcanalsobereadasanintriguinggeneralhistory(tongshi)ofGuangdong Province.ThebookislikeagoldmineofGuangdonghistoryinculture,economics,politics,localcustom,andliterature.Allreaders,nomatterwheretheirinterestsfall,willbeabletogetsomethingoutofit.Thebookshouldnotbeputaway afteronereading.Itisthetypeofworkthatisstronginitsownargument,butwill definitelybeconstantlyreferredtoandwillinspiremuchnewscholarshipinthe future. EnLi En Li is a PhD candidate in history at Washington University http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png China Review International University of Hawai'I Press

Emperor and Ancestor: State and Lineage in South China (review)

Li, En.
China Review International , Volume 18 (1) – Aug 9, 2011
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Abstract

50 ChinaReviewInternational:Vol.18,No.1,2011 c ontemporaryIndianart,both inIndiaandabroad,wouldhavebeenawelcome addition.Suchshiftsandredirectionswillcontinueandtheirimpactis unknowable,butawarenessofthepast,asprovidedbytheseessays,isanimportantguidetoanticipatingchange.Anotherissueimportanttothestudy,which was notaddressedinthisseriesofessays,istheinternetasamediumofthe exchangeofknowledgeandculturalandpersonalinteraction,andasamarketplace.Nearlyallworkingartistshavewebsites,asdomuseumsandgalleries.Local andinternationalweb-orientedformsofcommunicationproliferate,allowingfor continuousinteraction,regardlessofthetimezoneorgeographicallocationofthe surfer. PatriciaKaretzky Patricia Karetzky occupies the O. Munsterberg Chair of Asian Art at Bard College. She was editor of the JournalofChineseReligions and has written books on Chinese medieval art and has both curated many exhibits on Chinese Contemporary art and written numerous articles on the subject. DavidFaure.Emperor and Ancestor: State and Lineage in South China. Stanford,CA:StanfordUniversityPress,2007.464pp.Hardcover$50.00, isbn978-0-804-75318-0. DavidFaure'sbookisworthyofmorethanonereading.Basedontwentyyearsof fieldwork,FauretellsastoryofhowthecentralgovernmentinMing-QingChina interactedwiththegovernedthroughasocialinstitution:thelineage.Faure's researchonlineagesinSouthChinachallengesscholars'conventionalunderstandingoflineageasanaturalexistence,asatoolofstatecontrol,andasabackward remnantfromfeudalsociety. Whiletheformerunderstandingoflineageasanaturalexistencewascentered onpeoplewhosharedcommonancestorsandweretiedbyblood,Faure identifiesseveralimportanthistoricalmomentswhenlineagewassocially onstructed.FocusingonFoshan,acommercialandindustrialtownwestof c GuangzhouinSouthChina,andbasedonalargeamountoflanddeeds,contracts, andgene logies,Fauredepictsthevicissitudesoflineagessincethefifa teenth century.TheHuangXiaoyanguprisingin1449toreaparttheformer social fabricandsubugatedminorities,suchastheYaoandtheZhuangpeople, j forcingthemtoentertheadministrativecommunityandregisterascivilian (min) householdswithouttracingtheirorigins.In1521,theJiajingemperorof © 2012 by University of Hawai`i Press Reviews 51 the Mingdynastymadeasacrificetohisancestors,establishingarolemodelfor thelocalsocietytofollow.Sacrificingtoancestorswasnolongerlimitedtothe emperorandthearistocracy.ThelineageinSouthChinabasedonthelijiasystem wasassociatedhighlywithtaxpayment.TheSingleWhipReforminthelateMing dynastymadethecorveeserviceobsolete.Insteadofprovidingservicestothe Mingstatetosatisfytaxrequirements,lineageswereabletousesilvertopaytheir taxes.Thischangenotonlymonetizedthemarket,butalsoencouragedsingle householdstoformlineages.InMing-QingChina,asFaurepointsout,imperial ideologysoughttolinkthestatetosocietyrituallyandfinancially,andthelineage servedasoneofthemostimportantwaysforstatepowertoreachdowninto society. Lineagesweredevelopedthroughimperialpolicy,socialunrest,apoolingof resources,andritualpractice.However,lineageswerenotunderdirectcontrolby thestate.FaurecontributestotheunderstandingofstatecontrolofMing-Qing societybyillustratingtheintegrationoflocalsocietytothestate.Faurearguesthat "theimperialgovernmentdoesnotappearasanoverarchingauthorityimposing itswillonlocalsociety,asitoftenclaimedinstudiesofthe lijia"(p.74).Faure's local-staterelationshipwascontractualinsomesense.Bypracticingcommon ritualsandsacrificingtostate-sanctioneddeities,lineagesweregrantedlegal implicationstoritualrules,suchastherulesofdescent,andweregrantedtitlesto landholding.Moreover,increasingnumbersoflineagememberswereadmitted intoofficialdomviatheimperialexaminationandthegrowingwealthinthePearl RiverDelta,thusgainingpowerwithinthelineage.Therefore,byadoptingstate rituals,lineagesgainedthelegitimacyoflocalpowerandobtainedlegalautonomy, tosomeextent. Thefactthatlineagememberswerelinkedtogetherbyritualpracticewas moresignificantthanmereintegrationtothestate.AsFaureelaborates,with Neo-Confucianismasacentralizedideology,theorthodoxritualthatitcreated, andabureaucracythatgrantedpowerthroughexaminationregardlessoftheir participants'origins,thestateattachedasenseofmembershiptothelijiasystem. The lijiaregistrationwasnolongeranemptypolicythatwasdesignedfortax paymentintheearlyMing,butwasstronglyconstructedonacommonbelief. In thissense,FaurefurthersuggeststhattheMingEmpiremightbe"oneof the world'sfirstnation-states"(p.368).Builtonasharedbeliefandcommon ritual practice,MingChinawasassophisticatedasanineteenth-century nation-state. InFaure'scomprehensivenarrative,manyreadersmightfindthereevaluation oflineageasapowerfulsocialorganizationmostexciting.Previousscholarship thatalliedwiththeintellectualdiscourseduringtheMayFourthMovementinthe earlytwentiethcenturycriticizedlineagesformaintainingfamilyhierarchyand deprivingindividuallineagememberoffreedom.Thisdoesnotseemtobethe caseinFaure'sPearlRiverDelta.Economically,landholdingfacilitatedtheraising 52 ChinaReviewInternational:Vol.18,No.1,2011 ofsharedcapitalandexpansionofinvestment.Withouttheinterventionofstate power,thegentryestablisheditsleadershipthroughreligion,contracts,business investments,andciviladministration(p.214).DuringtheTaipingRebellionand OpiumWarsinthenineteenthcentury,thecentralstateevenreliedonlinage militiastoprotectthearea.Mostimportant,througheconomicandmilitary influence,localleaderswereabletorepresenttheircommunityinterestsand bargainedfortaxreductionwiththestate. Portrayingthelineageasamoderncorporation,Fauresuccessfullyengages in therecentdebateaboutcivilsocietyinChina.Byfocusingontheemergenceof guildsandcharitablehallsinthelatenineteenthcentury,previousscholarstried to arguethattherewasacivilsocietyinChinaandthatpublicspacedidexistin cities.ReadingFaure'slineages,whichheldlands,ownedarmfires,donatedfunds forpublicfacilities,and,mostimportant,wereabletorepresentcommunity interestsandnegotiatewiththestate,onefindsthatMing-QingChinawasnoless acivilsocietythanitsWesterncounterparts.Furthermore,thelineagewasnoless apublicspacethanguildsandcharitablehallsattheendoftheQing.Byfocusing onlineagesthatdevelopedmainlyintownsandinthecountrysideofthePearl RiverDeltaandwereprosperousforseveralhundredyears,Faurerectifiesthebias thatcivilsocietyonlyevolvedinurbanspaceandcamewithurbanizationand urbanidentities. Faure'sstatementaboutcivilsocietyinSouthChinaduringtheMing-Qing periodonceagainquestionsthediscourseofthelineageasabackwardremnant. AlthoughthelineagehadlostitspopularityinChinawhentheQingended, whetherpeoplehavebenefitedfrombeingorganizedasindividualcitizensinstead oflineagemembersishardtodetermine.Asindividualcitizens,peopleafter1911 didnothavetoobeylineagerulesbut,atthesametime,losttheiropportunityto grouptogetherpowerfullyaslineagetonegotiatewiththestate. AsummaryofFaure'smainideasisstraightforward,buttheworkitselfis amazinglyrichindetails.Ononelevel,thisworkinteractswithvariousdisciplines: regionalstudy,economichistory,andanthropology.Onanotherlevel,the bookcanalsobereadasanintriguinggeneralhistory(tongshi)ofGuangdong Province.ThebookislikeagoldmineofGuangdonghistoryinculture,economics,politics,localcustom,andliterature.Allreaders,nomatterwheretheirinterestsfall,willbeabletogetsomethingoutofit.Thebookshouldnotbeputaway afteronereading.Itisthetypeofworkthatisstronginitsownargument,butwill definitelybeconstantlyreferredtoandwillinspiremuchnewscholarshipinthe future. EnLi En Li is a PhD candidate in history at Washington University

Journal

China Review International – University of Hawai'I Press

Published: Aug 9, 2011

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