China’s rise to global prominence is one of the most remarkable stories of our time.  Millions of urban Chinese today enjoy lifestyles unthinkable in the days of Chairman Mao’s communist regime, and the country’s leadership has made continuing economic growth their primary goal, helping to transform China into a modern world power.  Rapid change has also created tensions within Chinese society: a new middle class and a small, wealthy elite contrast with a far larger number who feel they have yet to benefit from the new economy. Corruption and abuse of power have emerged as a potent source of discontent across China’s social divide. In this fully revised second edition, China Since 1949 traces key events from the Maoist era through the Reform period to the present day. The promises and challenges of China’s rise are explored within the context of the country’s remarkable transformation and the country’s new position as an international powerhouse.  The ideal text for courses in Chinese Studies.

Table of Contents:
CONTENTS   Introduction to the Series   A Note on Romanization and Pronunciation of Chinese Words Acknowledgements Publishers’ Acknowledgements   Chronology of Major Events Maps    PART ONE: CHINA’S PAST   1. GENERAL INTRODUCTION Themes in Recent Chinese History   Terms and Concepts   2. GEOGRAPHICAL AND HISTORICAL BACKGROUND   Geography    Historical Overview PART TWO: CHINA UNDER THE COMMUNIST PARTY      3. CHINA’S NEW REVOLUTIONARY ROAD, 1949–57   The CCP Leadership    The Party, the Government and the Military   International Relations and the Korean War   Domestic Policy: First Steps   4. THE RADICAL MAOIST PHASE, 1958–76 Tibet The Sino-Soviet Split The Seeds of the Cultural Revolution   The Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution Assessing Mao’s Impact on China  5. BUILDING REFORM-ERA CHINA, 1977–89  Deng Reverses the Maoist Direction    Foreign Investment and the SEZs   Deng and the Reorganization of the CCP   Family Planning and the ‘One Child’ Policy The ‘Opening’ of Chinese Society in the 1980s   Changes in Minority Regions    The Democracy Movement and Tiananmen Square    6. DEEPENING REFORM: CHINA IN THE 1990s    Economic Growth in the 1990s   Increasing Disparity between Urban and Rural China   China after Deng Xiaoping Popular Culture in the 1990s   7. CHALLENGES in the 1990s Pollution and the Environment Crime, Corruption and Vice Religious Policy   Equity in Education The Challenge of Employment and the ‘Floating Population’    China’s New Nationalism   8. CONTEMPORARY CHINESE SOCIETY Population and Social Change Social Classes Women and the Family Minorities Education Health Care The Environment The Arts, Entertainment, and Popular Culture Technology and Communication 9.  GOVERNMENT, POLITICS, AND THE ECONOMY SINCE 2000 Government, Party and Military The Economy 10. CHINA AND THE WORLD    China, Europe and the USA    China, Latin America, and Africa China and its Asian Neighbors China and Taiwan China as a Regional Power PART THREE: ASSESSING CHINA’S RISE     11.   CONCLUSIONS   PART FOUR: DOCUMENTS Glossary Who’s Who Bibliography Index