China Social Structure
Essay Title: “Social Stratification and Class Structure in post-reform China”
Class Module Code: CH3004
Student Name: Ross Fehily
Student Number: 107621124
Submission Date: 8 December
Word Count:
This essay will focus in on and look at contemporary China’s social stratification and social class make up and structure during the post reform era, (post 1978) and what affects it has on today’s social make up. It will outline the different class’s that make up contemporary China’s social structure and give a detailed outlook and perspective on each class, and show what change they have undergone since the opening of China’s economy in the late 1970’s and introduction to a market based economy. The greatest outcome will see how the transfer of the class’s from a socialist dictated economy and society during the Mao era, rapidly changed and fused into the modern market based economy of today’s China. This essay should also indict who has benefited most from such a quick and bold move to a market economy, and those who have lost out and not been so lucky as others due to the open door policy of China which was introduced in 1978, by then Chinese Premier Deng Xiao Ping （邓小平）. This essay will take each class individually and contrast them to other class’s, both those that existed during the Maoist era of pre-1978 and the class’s that have emerged as a result of the economic reforms pursued by China since the opening of its economy and internal reforms where introduced. Lastly it will look at if China’s communist party has steered away from the founding ethics of a socialist economy to that of a capitalist one due to social class division and what effect this can have on China in the near distant future.
Firstly looking at the Peasant class, one of the three original social class’s during the Maoist period of 1949-1978, (the other two being the working class and the cadre class). The peasant class, along with the working class during Maoist
Class Module Code: CH3004
Student Name: Ross Fehily
Student Number: 107621124
Submission Date: 8 December
Word Count:
This essay will focus in on and look at contemporary China’s social stratification and social class make up and structure during the post reform era, (post 1978) and what affects it has on today’s social make up. It will outline the different class’s that make up contemporary China’s social structure and give a detailed outlook and perspective on each class, and show what change they have undergone since the opening of China’s economy in the late 1970’s and introduction to a market based economy. The greatest outcome will see how the transfer of the class’s from a socialist dictated economy and society during the Mao era, rapidly changed and fused into the modern market based economy of today’s China. This essay should also indict who has benefited most from such a quick and bold move to a market economy, and those who have lost out and not been so lucky as others due to the open door policy of China which was introduced in 1978, by then Chinese Premier Deng Xiao Ping （邓小平）. This essay will take each class individually and contrast them to other class’s, both those that existed during the Maoist era of pre-1978 and the class’s that have emerged as a result of the economic reforms pursued by China since the opening of its economy and internal reforms where introduced. Lastly it will look at if China’s communist party has steered away from the founding ethics of a socialist economy to that of a capitalist one due to social class division and what effect this can have on China in the near distant future.
Firstly looking at the Peasant class, one of the three original social class’s during the Maoist period of 1949-1978, (the other two being the working class and the cadre class). The peasant class, along with the working class during Maoist