Making Texts in Villages: Textual Production in Rural China During the Ming-Qing Period The Harvard community has made this article openly available. Please share how this access benefits you. Your story matters Citation Li, Ren-Yuan. 2014. Making Texts in Villages: Textual Production in Rural China During the Ming-Qing Period. Doctoral dissertation, Harvard University. Citable link http://nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.InstRepos:13065015 Terms of Use This article was downloaded from Harvard University’s DASH repository, and is made available under the terms and conditions applicable to Other Posted Material, as set forth at http:// nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.InstRepos:dash.current.terms-of- use#LAA Making Texts in Villages: Textual Production in Rural China During the Ming-Qing Period A dissertation presented By Ren-Yuan Li To The Committee on History and East Asian Languages In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy In the subject of History and East Asian Languages Harvard University Cambridge, Massachusetts September 2014 © 2014 – Ren-Yuan Li All rights reserved Advisor: Mark Elliott and Michael Szonyi Ren-Yuan Li Making Texts in Villages: Textual Production in Rural China During the Ming-Qing Period Abstract This dissertation uses the textual materials found in several villages in Pingnan, northeastern Fujian, from 2008 to 2011, to examine the use of texts in rural China during the imperial period. The discussion focuses on the texts produced by local people and used locally. The central theme of the dissertation is to contextualize the rise of textual culture and the spread literate mentality in a marginal society, and explore the relationship between text and society. The dissertation consists of two major parts. Part I covers the period when Pingnan was the northern part of Gutian County, and Part II covers the period around and after the establishment of Pingnan County in 1734. Part I consists of three chapters. Chapter 1 traces the early textual practices in northern Gutian during the Song-Yuan period, and suggests a local perspective of textual culture. Chapter 2 discusses the establishment of official documentation system in the early Ming and its influence on local communities and the production of local texts. Chapter 3 uses a case of a rising family in the late Ming to illustrate the use of textual construction to promote one’s social and cultural status. Part II consists of four chapters and each chapter investigates the use of texts in one realm of village life. Chapter 4 starts with the penetration of genealogy compilation and the transformation of social structure. Chapter 5 discusses the political background for the proliferation of stone stelae and other “texts for public display.” Chapter 6 examines various iii kinds of textual materials used in economic activities, from managing lineage properties to land-exchanges and long-distant trades. Chapter 7 explores the creation within the transmission of ritual texts and their responses to the changing requirement of ritual performance. In the conclusion, this dissertation discusses the significance of textual culture in the general transformations and social integrations in northeastern Fujian, and also reconsiders the question of “literacy” in the context of local society. iv Contents Introduction ....................................................................................................................... 1 From History of the Book to History of the Text...................................................................................... 5 From History of Reading to History of Textual Practices ........................................................................ 8 From Local History to History of Local Textual Practices ..................................................................... 11 Location: Margin of the Empire .............................................................................................................. 16 Sources: Local Texts ............................................................................................................................... 23 Plan of the Dissertation ........................................................................................................................... 28 Part I Northern Gutian: Tigers and Panthers in Mountains, the 11th to the 17th Century 32 Chapter 1 The Early Tradition of Texts in Northern Gutian: Documents and Society during the Song-Yuan Period ........................................................................................ 48 Building a Lineage in Northern Gutian: Official Version ...................................................................... 49 Reconsidering Elite Model...................................................................................................................... 70 Texts from Below ................................................................................................................................... 78 Conclusion .............................................................................................................................................. 84 Chapter 2 Documenting the Regime: Local Administration and Documentation in the Ming 90 Official Documentation System in the Early Ming ................................................................................. 91 Limits of Official Documentation System ............................................................................................ 106 Local Impact of Official Documentation .............................................................................................. 122 Conclusion ............................................................................................................................................ 142 Chapter 3 Textualizing the Elites: Social Mobility and Genealogy Compilation 147 A Family Tutor’s Dream ....................................................................................................................... 148 History: Inventing the Origin ................................................................................................................ 151 State: Encountering the Government .................................................................................................... 161 Society: Entering the Elite Network ..................................................................................................... 172 Community: Organization and Location ............................................................................................... 186 Culture: Spreading a Tradition .............................................................................................................. 192 Conclusion ............................................................................................................................................ 198 v Part II Pingnan County: New County and New Order, the 18th to the Early 20th Centuries 202 Chapter 4 Society: Gentry and the Penetration of Written Genealogy ................... 215 Early Eighteenth Century: State Policy and the Revival of Lineage Building ..................................... 221 Late Eighteenth and Early Nineteenth Centuries: New Gentry and the Compilation of Genealogies .. 226 Nineteenth Century: Further Penetration of Genealogy Compilation ................................................... 237 The Production of Genealogies: Standardization and Diversification .................................................. 251 Conclusion ............................................................................................................................................ 263 Chapter 5 Politics: Displaying Texts, Displaying Powers ......................................... 269 Displaying the State .............................................................................................................................. 271 Displaying Communities ...................................................................................................................... 284 Conclusion: The Public of Letters ........................................................................................................ 298 Chapter 6 Economy: Texts in Property Management and Trades .......................... 306 Economic Activities within Lineages ................................................................................................... 309 Economic Activities in the Market ....................................................................................................... 331 Conclusion ............................................................................................................................................ 362 Chapter 7 Ritual: Ritual Texts and Ritual Tradition ............................................. 367 The Ritual Life in Pingnan .................................................................................................................... 370 The System of Texts in Pingnan Rituals ............................................................................................... 377 The Collection and Transmission of Ritual Texts ................................................................................. 394 Conclusion ............................................................................................................................................ 415 Conclusion ....................................................................................................................