A Study On The Changes Of East Sea-realated Families Of Zhejiang Province

The coastal areas of East Zhejiang have a long history in some industries such as fishing,salt production and sailing,which gradually forms a marine society,different from that in the inland.With the rapid revival of coastal trade,a large number of families have been involved in the sea trade since modem times,which have complex backgrounds,a wide range of business,abundant capital,and a strong family and geographical concept.There are different types of Sea-related Families,including families with comprador businessmen,local businessmen and overseas businessmen.They set up new industries,with a very innovative spirit,which undoubtedly promotes the the modernization process of coastal areas and achieves a unique position in the history of marine civilization.Therefore,their business activities and social activities have a profound impact on Zhejiang and even the nation.Furthermore,the history of these families does not only reflect the vitality of traditional marine culture in modern times,but also reflect the development of coastal society under the land-sea environment.The Huang Family is a representative of East Zhejiang Sea-related Families in Tai Zhou in modern time.Based on the analysis of its survival and development in the marine environment of East Zhejiang,we find that the mode of livelihood in East Zhejiang Sea-related Families presents various development and flexible adjustment in the ups and downs in the situation of modern china social change.The manage pattern of Huang Family has evolved with the change of marine environment in East Zhejiang.In detail,in early years of t Qing Dynasty,the coastal area was not peaceful,which resulted in the rapid decline in farming of this family.Since the late Qing Dynasty,the development of commodity economy and social unrest contribute to the re-rise of Huang Family and making it become one of the bureaucratic classes.Thanks to the stable political and economic environment in the later years,the Huang Family became involved in the sea business once again and gradually transformed to an industrial and commercial family.The Huang Family took advantage of the domestic "mercantilism","nationalism" to expand the family's industrial and commercial territory further,and then became the richest families in local society after the Sino—Japanese War of 1894—1895.From farming family to maritime family to political family,Huang Family represents the evolution path of the majority of East Zhejiang Sea-related Families,embodying the characteristics of sea-related families,which is different from those in the inland areas.Throughout the process of the evolution of Huang Family,,we can conclude that the development of majority the East Zhejiang Sea-related Families have the following characteristics in modern society.First,these families develop coastal north-south shipping trade based on the harbor.Then they take advantage of shipping to expand the family industry,which reflects the diversified development strategy of sea-land linkage;Second,these families regard the blood and geography as the center of internal heritage and local cooperation,reflecting the cooperation business strategy;Third,in part of industry,some families have employed the shareholding system that separates the management of ownership,which reflects a kind of modern business philosophy.Forth,these families manage the relationship between authorities and businessmen through taking participation in local affairs actively,which contributes to the accumulation of social capital and further grabbing the economic interests.It embodies the business interaction model between authorities and businessmen.Fifth,these families' organization shows loose trend,while the independence of individual families grows.Sixth,these families put the national ideology into the clan construction through repairing spectrum and temple of families,and setting common property of the families.Besides,the chief numbers of these families strive to participate in the construction of local society as "gentry",which contributes to achieving legitimacy of grassroots through the integration of local society and makes up for the lack of grassroots' social power.Seventh,the families were influenced by the Farming Culture which hindered the further development of marine character.In terms of the rise and fall of the East Zhejiang Sea-related Families,we can explore that there has been a balance among the nation,local society and the families in the modern Eastern Zhejiang,which are mutually influenced.Therefore,once the social structure becomes imbalanced,there will be unrestrained atmosphere in the sea trade with the weaker national control of grassroots.Then the families will make up for the vacuum of the grass-roots power and re-create the social structure,which shows the trend that the power of families become stronger and the national grassroots' power becomes weaker.While the social structure is relatively stable,in order to prevent the families to undermine the social balance,the nation will inhibit the development of families.Then it shows the relative decline of family power.To some extent,the rise and fall of the East Zhejiang Sea-related Families is the reflection of various social contradictions and various forces.The process of inheritance and development of industry and commerce in East Zhejiang does not only show the distinctive marine characteristics,but also present the gradual progress of the coastal areas from the political and economic fringe to the center in modern social transformation,which reflects the trend of evolution of the pattern that modern Chinese land and sea binary has been completed gradually.It means that the role of the ocean on China coastal socio-economic development has become increasingly prominent and the ocean also has increasing effect on the inland.