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The art of being governed : everyday politics in late imperial China / Michael Szonyi.
Author
Szonyi, Michael
[Browse]
Format
Book
Language
English
Published/Created
Princeton, New Jersey : Princeton University Press, [2017]
Description
xv, 303 pages : illustrations, maps ; 25 cm
Availability
Available Online
JSTOR DDA
De Gruyter Princeton University Press Complete eBook-Package 2018
De Gruyter Princeton University Press Complete eBook-Package 2017
University Press Scholarship Online Princeton Scholarship Online
Copies in the Library
Location
Call Number
Status
Location Service
Notes
Firestone Library - Stacks
DS753.2 .S96 2017
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Details
Subject(s)
China
—
Politics and government
—
1368-1644
[Browse]
China
—
History, Military
—
960-1644
[Browse]
China
—
History
—
Ming dynasty, 1368-1644
[Browse]
Summary note
An innovative look at how families in Ming dynasty China negotiated military and political obligations to the stateHow did ordinary people in the Ming dynasty (1368-1644) deal with the demands of the state? In The Art of Being Governed, Michael Szonyi explores the myriad ways that families fulfilled their obligations to provide a soldier to the army. The complex strategies they developed to manage their responsibilities suggest a new interpretation of an important period in China's history as well as a broader theory of politics.Using previously untapped sources, including lineage genealogies and internal family documents, Szonyi examines how soldiers and their families living on China's southeast coast minimized the costs and maximized the benefits of meeting government demands for manpower. Families that had to provide a soldier for the army set up elaborate rules to ensure their obligation was fulfilled, and to provide incentives for the soldier not to desert his post. People in the system found ways to gain advantages for themselves and their families. For example, naval officers used the military's protection to engage in the very piracy and smuggling they were supposed to suppress. Szonyi demonstrates through firsthand accounts how subjects of the Ming state operated in a space between defiance and compliance, and how paying attention to this middle ground can help us better understand not only Ming China but also other periods and places.
Bibliographic references
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Contents
Introduction. A Father Loses Three Sons to the Army : Everyday Politics in Ming China
Part I. In the Village. A Younger Brother Inherits a Windfall : Conscription, Military Service, and Family Strategies
A Family Reunion Silences a Bully : New Social Relations between Soldiers and Their Kin
Part II. In the Guard. An Officer in Cahoots with Pirates : Coastal Garrisons and Maritime Smuggling
An Officer Founds a School : New Social Relations in the Guards
Part III. In the Military Colony. A Soldier Curses a Clerk : Regulatory Arbitrage Strategies in the Military Colonies
A Temple with Two Gods : Managing Social Relations between Soldier-Farmers and Local Civilians
Part IV. After the Ming. A God Becomes an Ancestor : Post-Ming Legacies of the Military System
Conclusion.
Show 6 more Contents items
ISBN
9780691174518 (hardcover : alkaline paper)
0691174512 (hardcover : alkaline paper)
9780691197241 (paperback)
0691197245 (paperback)
LCCN
2017014806
OCLC
983796124
Statement on language in description
Princeton University Library aims to describe library materials in a manner that is respectful to the individuals and communities who create, use, and are represented in the collections we manage.
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The Art Of Being Governed : everyday politics in late imperial China / Michael Szonyi.
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99111869813506421
The Art of Being Governed : Everyday Politics in Late Imperial China / Michael Szonyi.
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99125336332306421