Read more
The research presented in this book explores the formation of the middle class in contemporary urban China.
Including case studies on middle-class professionals living in Beijing, this book analyses how social and economic changes to Chinese society create a middle-class lifestyle and new forms of distinction with a particular focus on the social construction of identity. Looking through the lens of individuals' perception of life trajectories and ideological taxonomies generated within the framework of post-Maoist China, the book uncovers the role that the Chinese middle-class play in a state-sponsored discourse and where the distinctions identifying the middle-class lifestyle produce inequality, transfer privilege, and disadvantage in contemporary urban China. It goes on to question hegemonic discourses on class, arguing that a middle-class identity is progressively constructed in urban China not only though consumption practices, but through the experience of non-individualistic activities in both the public and private spheres.
Analyzing how social distinctions are performed contributes to the understanding of the Chinese middle-class pre-pandemic, as well as the continual challenges this social group shall face in the years to come. As such, this is a must read for those interested in the Chinese middle-class, Chinese politics, and gender studies.
List of contents
Intoduction: The Paradigm of the Middle Class in Contemporary China 1. The Discursive Reconfiguration: Class and Discourse Construction After Reform 2. The Intellectual Reconfiguration: Definitions, Ideology and the Hidden Agenda 3. Class Reproduction, Consumption, and Inequality: The Reconfiguration of the Trajectories from the Centre 4. Celebrities, Happiness, and Romance. The Reconfiguration of the Motivations to Achieve 5. Friends, Family, and the Community. The Reconfiguration of the Public and Private Spheres 6. Conclusion: New Configurations to a Post-Pandemic Future
About the author
Alfonso Sánchez-Romera is a researcher at Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (InterAsia Research Group) and postdoctoral fellow at Freie Universität Berlin. He graduated in Humanities and East Asian Studies and holds a PhD in Intercultural Studies. His research interests include middle class, Chinese society and discourse analysis.
Summary
The research presented in this book explores the formation of the middle class in contemporary urban China.
