Papers by Patricia M. Thornton
Journal of Current Chinese Affairs, Dec 1, 2022
As the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) celebrated its centenary, its expanding role in penetrating,... more As the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) celebrated its centenary, its expanding role in penetrating, regulating, and reshaping social organisations (社会组织, shehui zuzhi) seemed to signal a decisive shift in not only the arrangement, but also the balance, of power between the state, the voluntary sector, and the party in favour of the latter. Beginning with the recent reform "decoupling" professional associations and chambers of commerce (行业协会商会, hangye xiehui shanghui) from state management, which has been cited in official documents as a model for "separating the state from society" and an initial step in further reducing the state management in other realms of activity, this article considers broad trends in the CCP's historical relationship with social organisations, particularly alongside its shifting relationship with the state apparatus after 1949, over time. Working through both the CCP's governing practice of "documentary politics" and, more recently, initiatives to expand "rule by law" under Xi, I argue that the party has vastly increased its power, presence, and control over both as it marked its centenary, albeit at times donning the mask of the state to do so. I conclude that the party's continued advance under Xi is occurring at the expense of both the autonomy of the state administration and that of social forces.
The cultural economy of Falun Gong in China: A rhetorical perspective [Book Review]
China Journal, 2012
Revolution and Counterrevolution in China: The Paradoxes of Chinese Struggle Lin Chun London: Verso Books, 2021 343 pp. £25.00 ISBN 978-1-78873-563-6 - China's Revolutions in the Modern World: A Brief Interpretive History Rebecca E. Karl London: Verso Books, 2020 223 pp. £18.99 ISBN 978-1-78873-5...
The China Quarterly, May 24, 2022
Political Corruption and the Nationalist State
Harvard University Asia Center eBooks, Sep 13, 2007
The new cybersects: Popular religion, repression and resistance
Comrades and collectives in arms: Tax resistance, evasion, and avoidance strategies in post-Mao China
Beneath the Banyan Tree: Popular Views of Taxation and the State during the Republican and Reform Eras
Twentieth-Century China, 1999
... agreements with subordinate administrations, and while thirteen types of itemized expenditure... more ... agreements with subordinate administrations, and while thirteen types of itemized expenditures were permitted for county budgets, the laws did not ... Miscellarreous surcharges to the land tax, acreage levies (mujuan )25 and provisional imposts (tankuan or tanpai) began to climb ...
Mao's Invisible Hand
respectively; and at a meeting of the "History/Media/Representation" working group organized by M... more respectively; and at a meeting of the "History/Media/Representation" working group organized by Matthew D. Johnson and James Reilly at the University of Oxford. The author is grateful for the generous comments and questions offered by participants at all three venues.
Evolutionary Governance in China: State–Society Relations under Authoritarianism Edited by Szu-Chien Hsu, Kellee S. Tsai and Chun-Chih Chang Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2021 396 pp. $32.95; £26.95; €29.50 ISBN 978-0-674-25119-9
The China Quarterly, Feb 21, 2022
This analytically rigorous volume on contemporary state–society relations pushes beyond the preva... more This analytically rigorous volume on contemporary state–society relations pushes beyond the prevailing “intellectual cottage industry of adjectives modifying authoritarianism” (p. 12) to describe Chinese governance by drilling down into the sources of authoritarian durability over time; the authors collectively seek to offer a nuanced, dynamic model of evolutionary governance practices in China that balances empirical richness with conceptual precision. Surprisingly, given the complexity of the task, they succeed. Employing a complex framework that combines a 2 x 2 typology of state–society interactions assessed both diachronically and in interaction with each other (hard state/hard society; hard state/soft society; soft state/hard society; and soft state/soft society), the contributors aim to capture the ways in which actors and practices on either side of the state–society dyad are mutually evolving with respect to a particular problematic or issue. The cases present initial dyads that are assessed against nine outcome variables reflecting specific dimensions of political power, governance and policy outcomes across eight issue domains (p. 5). What emerges is a complex portrait of the ceaseless dynamism that characterizes the practices of Chinese governance under Xi Jinping: “connected, contingent, cumulative, yet changeable,” as Elizabeth J. Perry observes in her epilogue (p. 393). Kellee Tsai’s incisive summary and critique of the proliferating “authoritarianism with adjectives” literature is impressively comprehensive. Within it, she highlights three broad trends that drive recent scholarship: a focus on the information flows between state and society; explorations of the media as a tool for both understanding and remoulding popular opinion; and the “paradoxical vibrancy of off-line contentious politics in an otherwise repressive authoritarian context” (p. 17). Szu-chien Hsu and Chun-chih Chang in their chapter pick up on these themes in their quantitative survey project of 125 cases of state–society interactions published between 2005 and 2015 in leading social science journals on China. Although they unsurprisingly confirm the power of the state to impose its will on society when it elects “strong” strategies of engagement, they note the success of societal actors to effect particular outcomes when the state chooses “soft” strategies (or when both do), highlighting the essential dilemma that resides at the core of authoritarian evolutionary governance: that whereas “strong” (repressive) strategies allow the state to retain political power, it is the “softer” (cooperative, collaborative) modes of engagement with society that appear to actually further resilience by achieving improvements in governance and furthering policy change. The remaining chapters offer empirically rich and detailed case studies across four domains of governance: community; environment and public health; management of the economy and labour; and social and religious organizations. Yousun Chung tracks the evolving legislative impact of homeowner activism in Beijing, and finds evidence of increasing pluralism in the policy-making process as urban homeowners have become more empowered since the early 2000s. Szu-chien Hsu and Muyi Chou track the vast transformations in China’s voluntary sector since 275
Corruption by Design: Building Clean Government in Mainland China and Hong Kong [Book Review]
China Journal, 2006
The China Quarterly, Apr 24, 2023
and Dimitar Gueorguiev argued that Hu-Wen era reforms that aimed to increase government transpare... more and Dimitar Gueorguiev argued that Hu-Wen era reforms that aimed to increase government transparency and open up new channels for public consultation in law-making succeeded in significantly improving public administration and, therefore, governance outcomes across China. By disclosing information on government budgets and allowing for limited forms of public participation via hearings and public comment campaigns, the central party-state has been able to deter corruption and ensure downstream compliance, ultimately boosting both the effectiveness and legitimacy of the regime. Gueorguiev's new monograph seeks to press beyond the model of public consultation described in China's Governance Puzzle, and to catalogue the fuller range of participatory arenas that cast Chinese citizens as participants in the project of authoritarian governance. Gueorguiev refers to this as "controlled inclusion." If the "preoccupation with control at the expense of inclusion leads to brutish and crude dictatorship" (p. 27), and increased inclusion without upscaled control leads to social instability, Gueorguiev's analysis posits the possibility of a dynamic balance between the two that can become not only self-perpetuating, but even selfreinforcing. He acknowledges that this is a difficult balance to strike: "controlled inclusion presupposes a level of control that is most likely out of reach for low-capacity or narrowly constituted authoritarian regimes … [however] for those regimes that have either inherited or invested in broader public support bases and more sophisticated methods of control, greater inclusion becomes an option as well as an opportunity" (p. 30). Allowing critics to speak on behalf of their interests and concerns during the policy formulationinstead of implementationprocess can preempt and otherwise reduce overt opposition. Selective inclusion of the public in deliberation can provide agents of the state with valuable information that can improve outcomes, as well as boost legitimacy. These are not new findings; but the author hones in on the specific mechanisms by which this is achievedthose efficient controls that "not only make inclusion less risky … but also help the regime render inputs generated by inclusion into useful information" (p. 32)in the Chinese context. These include citizen tip-offs that aid in anticorruption efforts, structured consultation campaigns and public opinion surveys that are generally targeted to dovetail with regime preferences, as well as the participation of delegates in local people's congresses. Each of these opportunities for inclusion, naturally, is accompanied by inherent dangers: internet portals inviting informants to report corrupt dealings could flood a system with spurious and unfounded accusations; public opinion surveys could spark popular debate that might potentially deepen polarization and create political flashpoints around sensitive issues; allowing delegates to coordinate their proposals could encourage organized opposition. The downstream policy effects of controlled inclusion in practice likewise involve substantial trade-offs: public consultation slows implementation, participatory budgeting tends to raise public expectations regarding accountability, and the government's heavy
At the Crossroads of Empires: Middlemen, Social Networks, and State-Building in Republican Shanghai. Nara Dilllon , Jean C. Oi
China Journal, 2009
At the Crossroads of Empires: Middlemen, Social Networks, and State -Building in Republican Shang... more At the Crossroads of Empires: Middlemen, Social Networks, and State -Building in Republican Shanghai, edited by Nara Dilllon and lean C. Oi. Stanford: Stanford University Press, 2008. xiv + 310 pp. US$50.00 (hardcover). No Chinese city has stimulated the level of scholarly interest and captivated the historical imagination more than Republican Shanghai. Poised at the confluence of four global empires - the British, French, American and Chinese - and physically comprised of three semi-independent municipalities, Shanghai in its heyday was clearly a place like no other: vibrant center of global capitalism, roiling hotbed of political ferment, and social Mecca for a curiously diverse cast of characters. Yet, despite the multiple centrifugal forces that threatened to pull it apart from within and without, Shanghai continued to function as a coherent whole. What managed to hold the city together during the course of the long and tumultuous Republican era? This book offers a range of richly researched and well-considered answers to this question, clustering around three separate but interrelated factors: a small handful of unusually astute middlemen, the complex and far-flung networks in which they were embedded, and the distinctive hybrid elite culture that such networks fostered, blending civic, aesthetic, mercantile and other pursuits in a manner that shaped distinct but compelling local and national identities. In relying upon these three themes to organize the volume, Dillon and Oi have positioned the contributions to the highlight broader comparative considerations in their introduction. In addition to Robert Putnam's work on social capital discussed in the introductory chapter, the individual chapters offer much to our collective understanding of Shanghai's emergence during the long century from its opening as a treaty port city in 1843 to the socialization of its industrial sector in 1956. Part II examines the cases of three prominent Shanghai residents during the Republican Era. Wen-hsin Yeh's chapter on educator and publicist Huang Yanpei explores the fusion of nationalistic themes and Shanghai's burgeoning mercantile and industrial interests in the work of the Chinese Society of Vocational Education (CSVE). At its height in the late 1920s, the Nationalist-governmentsubsidized CSVE served as a key node for mobilizing mass political expression and bridging the regional divides that fragmented Shanghai's teeming urban populace. However, as Yeh shows, the mutual accommodation that it fostered with the state curtailed its potential to express divergent views and, ultimately, its political independence. Kuiyi Shen's biographical chapter on the rise of activist Wang Yiting from his humble origins to a position of wealth and prominence documents the rich and varied palette of options available to Shanghai-based social aspirants capable of blending careers in business, civic service and the arts. Brian Martin's chapter on the notorious and colorful criminal overlord Du Yuesheng details how the French Concession Green Gang came to serve not only as an instrument of Du's power but also as a quasi-official organ of urban management within a city characterized by the fragmentation of political authority among various jurisdictions. The middle three chapters highlight the dynamics of the various networks political, social and economic - that shaped Shanghai city life over time. …
The Mutable, the Mythical, and the Managerial: Raven Narratives and the Anthropocene
Environment and society, 2015
Excerpt The mutable, the mythical, and the managerial: Raven narratives and the Anthropocene save... more Excerpt The mutable, the mythical, and the managerial: Raven narratives and the Anthropocene save format_quote email share © 2019 Berghahn Books Follow us on: Powered by: PubFactory Accessibility Rights & Permissions Terms & Conditions Contact Us Privacy Policy
The China Quarterly, Mar 1, 2013
While existing scholarship focuses attention on the impact of state control and repression on Chi... more While existing scholarship focuses attention on the impact of state control and repression on Chinese civil society, the increasingly independent role of the Communist Party has been largely overlooked. This article reviews the Party's drive to "comprehensively cover" grassroots society over the previous decade against the theoretical debate unfolding among Chinese scholars and Party theoreticians regarding the Party's role with respect to civil society. Focusing on greater Shanghai, frequently cited as a national model of Party-building, I describe the Party's advance and the emergence of Party-organized non-governmental organizations (PONGOs), a new hybrid form of social organization sponsored and supported by local Party committees. I argue that these developments invite a reconsideration of our understandings of the ongoing "associational revolution" and of the Party's relationship to China's flourishing "third realm."
End of an Era: How China's Authoritarian Revival is Undermining Its Rise Carl Minzner Oxford: University of Oxford Press, 2018 xxii + 255 pp. £19.99 ISBN 978-0-19-067208-9
The China Quarterly, Sep 1, 2018
2. Blowback
New York University Press eBooks, Dec 31, 2020
A New Urban Underclass? Making and Managing “Vulnerable Groups” in Contemporary China
Cambridge University Press eBooks, Oct 25, 2017
Abstract: This chapter examines the role of grassroots Party branches in managing members of Chin... more Abstract: This chapter examines the role of grassroots Party branches in managing members of China’s increasingly mobile labour force, and particularly those living precariously in Chinese cities. The Party has long sought to mediate class relations chiefly through the creation of coalitions and manipulation of social cleavages in order to bolster its own political hegemony, frequently relying upon practices drawn from its own revolutionary past, particularly its tradition of “mass work.” In the era of market reform, the Party’s governing strategies among the urban poor include targeted surveillance, frequent and routine structured encounters with local authorities and agents of the Party-state, and coercive strategies of control. Working through or alongside new resident’s committees or public security management teams, grassroots Party branches seek to control, curtail, and contain the visibility of so-called “vulnerable groups” within urban society, of which migrant and itinerant workers form a key part. The net effect of these efforts has been the securitisation of social governance policies targeting the urban poor, and is indicative of the emergence of an increasingly bifurcated model of urban governance that promises more latitude and freedom to those who enjoy moderate levels of prosperity while tightly controlling who have fallen behind, increasing the gap between power and privilege that exists today.
China’s non-traditional security
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Papers by Patricia M. Thornton