Ask your institution or your library to subscribe to the Journal. Simply fill out this form, and your University will receive the request for you.
With an annual subscription you will get access to ALL the articles. Read online or download, for less than $5 a month (billed annually)!
With an annual subscription you will get access to ALL the articles, plus printed copies of new issues – free shipping.
Little published research highlights how Chinese residents sought to resist state imposed housing policies when Mao Zedong was Communist Party leader (1949 - 1976) of the People’s Republic of China. By using extracts from previously unpublished eye witness accounts, this paper bridges that gap in existing scholarship. The paper shows how Burke’s (1966; 1969) dramaturgically informed method of narrative analysis may be instrumental in revealing agency as resistance. Analysis of three previously unpublished vignettes, contextualised within metaphorical representations of resistance, reveals a new tripartite typology of agency whereby resistance is characterized as: agency through deferment; agency through acquiescence and agency through protest. The potential of hidden transcripts, discourses of rightful resistance and the donning of the metaphorical perruque to reveal sub-cultures of power at the neighbourhood level in Mao’s China are exposed. The extent to which the eclectic mix of both resistance strategies and tactics enabled the residents and other stakeholders to improve their social, cultural and material capital over space, place and time is reviewed. In its concluding comments, the paper reflects on the new typology. The methodological challenges present when using eye witness accounts in reviews of agency as resistance both in the Maoist era and mainland China as a whole are considered. Implications for future research and resistance theory are also explored.
Are you a researcher or activist interested in nonviolent resistance?
We’re building a community of scholars, activists, and thinkers dedicated to understanding and advancing nonviolent resistance through research and action.
By subscribing to our mailing list, you will:
Our vision is to build a space for collaboration and collective growth. We are interested in hearing from you, learn about new perspectives, think about opportunities for more join initiatives and creative ideas to advance nonviolent resistance. All of this can be possible if we keep in touch with likeminded thinkers.
Let’s build this movement together.