How To Survive: The Daily Practices and Mentalities of Urban Poor in the 1920s–1930s Republic of China
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.54097/6njsq581Keywords:
Urban poor; social mentality; republican China; history of daily practices; structural inequality.Abstract
In different historical periods, the urban poor are a seemingly overlooked but important group. This study employs a historical perspective and uses diverse literature to reveal the daily behaviours and mental worlds of urban poor in the Republic of China, 1920s–1930s. The study revealed that the mentality of the economically disadvantaged was characterized by pervasive existential anxiety. While this fatalistic cognitive framework served to mitigate psychological collapse, it also served to limit the development of direct political demands. Concurrently, a “survival first” ethos promoted a strategic renunciation of the principle of “face”, while limited everyday resistance and the emergence of social resentment amassed emotional and organizational resources for subsequent collective action. This social mentality is both a product of oppressive structures and a manifestation of the survival wisdom and subjectivity of vulnerable groups. Moreover, this study demonstrates that any account of modernization that neglects entrenched inequalities will encounter difficulties in achieving social integration.
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