The Jade Emperor’s Last Taste of Water An ethnography on the making of a village in China Suvi Rautio Cover photo: Meili villager standing beside a bayberry tree along the mountains that border the village. Photo taken by Suvi Rautio. The Jade Emperor’s Last Taste of Water: An ethnography on the making of a village in China PhD thesis © Suvi Rautio Research Series in Anthropology University of Helsinki, Finland Distributed by: Unigrafia https://shop.unigrafia.fi/ ISSN: 1458-3186 ISBN 978-951-51-4960-2 (paperback) ISBN 978-951-51-4961-9 (PDF) The Jade Emperor’s Last Taste of Water An ethnography on the making of a village in China Suvi Rautio PHD DISSERTATION Doctoral dissertation, to be presented for public examination with the permission of the Faculty of Social Sciences of the University of Helsinki, in Auditorium XV, University Main Building, on the 30th of March, 2019 at 10 o’clock. Akateeminen väitöskirja, joka Helsingin yliopiston Valtiotieteellinen tiedekunnan suostumuksella esitetään julkisesti tarkastettavaksi, Auditorium XV, yliopiston päärakennus, perjantaina 30. maaliskuuta 2019 klo 10. Helsinki 2019 Opponent Assistant Professor Hans Steinmüller London School of Economics ~ Pre-examiners Professor Harriet Evans; University of Westminster Associate Fellow Sam Geall; University of Sussex ~ Dissertation supervisors Professor Sarah Green; Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Helsinki Research Fellow Katja Uusihakala; Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Helsinki ~ External expert advisor Emeritus Professor Stephan Feuchtwang; London School of Economics ~ The Faculty of Social Sciences uses the Urkund system (plagiarism recognition) to examine all doctoral dissertations. Abstract What constitutes and defines a village in China today? This study seeks to answer this question within the space of an ethnic minority Dong village in southwest China acknowledged for its natural and architectural beauty in national and international official heritage programmes. The Jade Emperor’s Last Taste of Water takes an ethnographic approach to deconstruct how an ethnic minority village is constituted, adjusted and redefined from the vantage point of where one stands. Distancing itself from a more comprehensive village ethnography, this thesis structures around scales, both spatial and perspectival. The thesis comprises of four parts whereby each part reverses the vantage point of the onlooker to consider a different scale. In shifting vantage points, this study argues that the conception of a village space, from whatever angle, is not a fixed phenomenon. Instead, it is a continuously reconstructed effort adopted by people according to the social hierarchical constructions that get attached to a village space. Often leading to tensions and conflicts that arise in response to these inclusive social orderings, my thesis argues that places, in this case a village space, are continuously made and remade through these responses. Drawing on broader discussions such as the dynamics of cultural heritage politics; ethnic representation; landscape and belonging; and rural ethnic subjectivities and male status, this thesis provides a comprehensive analysis of the workings behind China’s top-down policies of rural heritage reconstruction efforts to reveal the incongruences and layers of social difference that characterise rural China today. To the people of Meili, who reminded me to laugh even when I fall Contents Acknowledgements ................................................................................................................ i Notes on Transliteration, Units of Measurement and Pseudonyms ......................... iv 1 INTRODUCTION The Jade Emperor’s Last Taste of Water ................................... 1 Making Ethnicity Peripheral populations in Imperial and Contemporary China An anthropological approach to China’s ethnic minority population Making Place Centre and peripheries Bounded place Thesis Layout 2 MEILI VILLAGE Between the Claws of the Dragon ............................................. 20 Research Setting Locally shared histories: Maintaining boundaries Hegemonic histories: Making a ‘Traditional Village’ Research Conditions My affiliations with the local government Homelife Gaining trust and accepting criticism PART ONE Fragments: The making of an ethnographer 3 The emotional anthropologist ...................................................................................... 45 The gaze Desire Guilt Facing and closing differences Conclusion PART TWO Completion: A village whole 4 Saving a Traditional Village ........................................................................................... 63 Take a picture from a distance Saving tradition from the horror Protectors of the countryside A house that’s bigger than your neighbour’s Conclusion 5 Planning a Traditional Village ...................................................................................... 83 Modelling aesthetic order Getting your hands dirty to do the work “Show us the benefits” Dressed like a village Conclusion PART THREE Permutations: A village from inside 6 Voices in the village ........................................................................................................ 111 Moving lips, mute voices A new choir is formed Fostering a tiger that grows up to attack you Conclusion 7 Virility along the margins ............................................................................................. 132 “He speaks spicy” Big boss persona Conclusion PART FOUR Bounded: A Village of Relations Interlude ................................................................................................................................ 150 8 A Village Turned Inward .............................................................................................. 156 Sites of healing Threats from the other centre Conclusion 9 Relations of Loss ............................................................................................................. 172 Departure Locating the dead Return Conclusion 10 CONCLUSION .............................................................................................................. 196 Making a Village in China Key arguments rephrased Future research References ........................................................................................................................... 206 Acknowledgements This work would not have been made possible without everyone I met in my field-site, a village which I refer to as Meili. I am entirely indebted to the families who treated me like their own, showing me generosity and kindness over the course of my research. Words are not enough to express how grateful I am of their patience and guidance reminding me to live life with purpose and humour. ᝏ䉒ᡁ൘⭠䟾⛩˄᮷ѝॆ਽Ѫ Meili Ⲵᶁᆀ˅䙷ࡠⲴ⇿ањӪDŽ ˈᱟ֐Ԝ֯䘉ㇷ䇪᮷ᡀѪҶਟ㜭DŽ൘ᡁ⹄ウ䗷〻ѝˈ֐ԜᖵᡁྲӢӪа㡜 ҏᮉᡁ᢮ࡠ⭏⍫ⲴⴞⲴ઼ᒭ唈DŽሩ֐ԜⲴឧមо㙀ᗳᑞࣙˈᡁⲴᝏ◰ѻᛵ ᰐԕ䀰㺘DŽ My introduction to Meili was made possible by Li Kuanghan who reached out to me with generous trust from the beginning. I owe this research journey to her and the knowledge she has always shared with me. I also want to thank the numerous architects, designers and artists working with Kuanghan who spent different durations of time in the village, especially Zhang Li, who slept in the neighbouring room from me in the village administration building. I am grateful for his friendship, being there for me and the many conversations we shared over beers exchanging perspectives on village affairs bridging them to larger political trends in China. I also want to thank the representatives of the state cultural bureau in the county town who received me in Meili and took me as a member of the heritage project. I thank everyone who travelled to see me in Meili: Elina Hakanen, Sun Peipei, Liu Sutie, Paul Johansen, Sonya Chee, Jamie Barton and my father. Each visit opened new encounters and ways of understanding Meili whilst at the same time opening new interpretations of my own positionality. Many of the photos that appear in this thesis were taken during these visits. Completing a PhD would not have been possible without the help and support I have received from numerous teachers and peers. My supervisor Sarah Green at the University of Helsinki has been the ‘rock’ to my work from the beginning. Always asking the right questions to help me work through my ideas and research interests, these questions invited me to ‘look under the ii carpet’ and delve further in the world of anthropological thought. Just over four years by my side and Sarah continues to inspire both intellectually and personally. Alongside Sarah, Stephan Feuchtwang has been an invaluable guide. Stephan’s expertise and commitment towards the anthropology of China has been a huge source of inspiration since I started my university studies. To have my work commented on by him in the amount of depth and commitment he has provided as an advisor has been a huge privilege I could never have imagined when I started my thesis. It was an honour to be received by Wang Mingming who arranged my student exchange at Peking University prior to my ethnographic field-work. The confidence he entrusted in me in the beginning of this journey gave me courage to explore themes that continue to stimulate my interests towards anthropology. He also trained me in the ethnographers’ most vital task, the Chinese art of social drinking, which remained a vital skill throughout my ethnography. I also want to thank Wang Mingming’s students: Sun Jing, He Beili, Ke Xiao and others