The Rise of Political Intellectuals in Modern China [Hardcover]

The May Fourth movement (1915-1923) is widely considered a watershed in the history of modern China. This book is a social history of cultural and political radicals based in China's most important hinterland city at this pivotal time, Wuhan.

Current narratives of May Fourth focus on the ideological development of intellectuals in the seaboard metropoles of Beijing and Shanghai. And although scholars have pointed to the importance of the many cultural-political societies of the period, they have largely neglected to examine these associations, seeing them only as the seedbeds of Chinese communism and its leaders, the most prominent of these being Mao Zedong.

This book, by contrast, portrays the everyday life of May Fourth activists in Wuhan's cultural-political societies founded by teacher and journalist Yun Daiying (1895-1931). Rahav examines how the radical politics in the hinterland urban centers developed into a nationwide movement that would provide the basis for the emergence of mass political parties, namely the Nationalist Party (Guomindang) and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

Contents

Acknowledgments
Preface
Introduction
1. Seeds of Radicalism in a Hinterland Metropolis
2. We Are Not Powerless, China's Affairs Are Not Hopeless : Yun Daiying and the Mutual Aid Society
3. A Communal Bookstore: The Benefit the Masses Book Society
4. Sociability And Ideology: May Fourth Social Networking
5. From Societies To Party
Conclusion
Bibliography
Glossary
Index

In sum, using Yun Diying as an example, the author has successfully explained how grassroots organizations and activities built the foundation for revolutionary parties, and his ethnographic study provides ample evidence for this....[T]his book is very important for students of intellectuals and Chinese politics. Current intellectuals desiring reform and revolution have many lessons to learn from it. --Zhidong Hao,Journal of Chinese PolilÓ