Political Participation Under The Social Control In The Qing Dynasty

The Baojia law is the system of social control in Chinese ancient local society and it is the institution where it built the "family-country" system.Therefore,it is also the main system of social governance.It is true that the system has some positive effects at a certain time,but the rigidity of the Baojia system which is under despotism of imperial authority and centralization of authority has also been criticized by people.When faced with a system that has already died,it is actually more important to draw on its experience and to excavate its internal logical thinking.Through the practical experience of Baojia Law in Ba County,we can analyze the pattern of its political participation by using a long-time sample,and then,to provide a beneficial sample for the overall local social governance model in ancient China.Instead of the previous paradigm of studying "state-society",I divide the relationship between state and society into two levels: reality and principle,hoping to break the gap between practice and theory.Except for the introduction and conclusion,the article contains four parts altogether.According to analyze social history,the first part introduces the physiognomy,social governance problems,socio-economic status and traditional bureaucracy of Ba County,which in order to clarify the actual state among country,society and the individual in the Qing Dynasty.In the principle of “state-social” relations,the second part clarifies the small space of "consultation" in "quasi-official governance".Mainly includes: "The general idea of" one emperor and tens of thousands of common people "will not change as the specific social and economic conditions change;the Baojia system is a means by which the imperial power imposes" discipline "on the public and its limit is almost none-existent,its purpose is to strengthen social control;With the help of "quasi-formal social governance",the Baojia system is actually a overall control strategy implemented by the formal social governance.On the practical level,the third part clarifies the "absence" of the Baojia headmen and the country gentry class in the political participation.Mainly includes: The setting of Baojia’s function is fully opened under the “plane society”,but there are different focus in specific period;The Baojia headman in Ba County is effective in actually carrying out his function,but this effect is only minimal and negative,which does not reach the "ideal goal" of institutional designers.The process of social differentiation further exacerbates that the contry grabbed the leader power of the rural social public affairs.However,based on the purpose of private-interest competition,it also failed to promote service for "public interest".Based on the "power network" formed according to the interests of each political subject in Ba County,the fourth part summarizes the mode of political participation of Baojia Law in Ba County.Under the background of Chinese traditional culture,combined with the unique characteristics of Ba County itself,it inevitably formed its own particular "power network." Mainly includes: Subjected to financial and human resource constraints,Ba County can only use the method of quasi-formal governance to strengthen the indirect control ability of formal governance;but the dominating position of ideological legitimacy covered up the country’s inadequate capacity of public service for common people.In such a system,the country gentry class took advantage of its own ideology and further grabbed the leader power of rural affairs.However,the socio-economic conditions that is peculiar to Ba County like "more than half of peasant unproducibility" and "a number of small landowners" as well as the needs of the realistic social governance made the "society" who is main participant in political participation has its own demands,which stimulates the vitality of autonomous political participation.However,there is still a long way to go to the "village autonomy" that we had envisaged in the past.On the whole,the model of social governance in Qing dynasty was an indirect and comprehensive social control.However,the specific control power presented was different when facing complex situation in different regions.However,this absolute control form can not obstruct the public’s resolving needs in real social life.Therefore,even in such a narrow space for political participation,the people have their own demands for political participation.Such autonomy can be reconciled with the goal of strengthening state power and its legitimacy within the basic limits(such as "security").However,further development will inevitably lead to the competition between "private interest" and "public interest",thus will promote the disintegration of " Patriarchal clan integration structure" and make the antisystem awareness occupy the high ground.