Yun Daiying and the rise of political intellectuals in modern China: Radical societies in May Fourth Wuhan

This dissertation examines the formation of a radical political culture among educated youth in the central China metropolis of Wuhan during the time of the pivotal May Fourth Movement (1915-1923). The dissertation undertakes a quasi-ethnographic investigation of two cultural-political societies, the Mutual Aid Society (Huzhu she) and Benefit the Masses Book Society (Liqun shushe), that were founded by local activist Yun Daiying (1895-1931) and that presaged the local Chinese Communist Party cell. The dissertation examines the practices and activities of these societies, as well as their engagement with similar organizations in other locales and with society at large. It argues that in their everyday practices these societies cultivated a notion of the moral self which was seen as a prerequisite for national revival. The study also demonstrates how by distributing radical literature, corresponding with other activists, and meeting with them Yun's societies became centers of regional radicalism and connected local activities in Wuhan with those in other urban centers. Yun's associations thus forged regional and national networks of radicalism. The dissertation argues that, in this way May Fourth radicals constructed a political culture that was geographically expansive if socially limited. The dissertation therefore sheds light on the function of informal associations during May Fourth and suggests that their social context was no less important than ideas in the emergence of a nationwide culture of youthful radicalism and the subsequent transition to mass party politics.The dissertation contributes to the historiography of May Fourth in both methodology and geographical scope. Current historiography of May Fourth focuses on the ideological development of intellectuals, and for the most part concentrates on the centers of Beijing and Shanghai. By contrast, the dissertation undertakes a social history of May Fourth intellectuals in a hinterland city. By examining the ways in which May Fourth cultural-political associations operated, the dissertation illuminates the role of sociability within the dynamics of ideas and revolution in China. At the same time, the dissertation contributes to the historical sociology of intellectuals, a field that has been theorized largely from European experience.