The Process of Change in the Chinese Family in Hubei Villages

概要

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This paper discusses briefly the contours of the transformations in Chinese family structure and Confucianism's role during the past century by taking the case of Lijiawan village in Hubei Province. I will make three points. First, I will analyze how the structure of the joint family functioned during traditional times before Liberation and during the period after Liberation. I will argue that, contrary to the theories of YANG (1959), FREEDMAN (1966) and others, the joint family has survived among the poor, and that the survival of the joint family rests on the Confucian values and social influence of the patriarch. Second, I will argue that in order to understand the changes and continuities in family structure during the time after Liberation, it is necessary to differentiate the family structure in the people's commune period from the family structure seen since economic reforms. I will use this useful differentiation to analyze family structure. Third, I will argue that although Confucianism's moral code weakened during the period after the people's communes, the religious aspects of Confucianism that valued patrilineal ideology remained relatively strong. The intense traditional ambition to propagate the male line has not changed despite significant changes in the forms of the traditional family.
日本文化人類学会の論文