The Gentry In China

,Hsiao-tung   In ,Hsiao-tung Fei tries to introduce to foreign readers the sources of gentry in China, the tradition of scholar being officials, the ignoring of knowledge and technology in traditional Chinese society, the difference between villages, towns and cities,the rural handicraft industry and the agriculture,the influence of foreign economy on rural areas,and so on.   In that time, before the founding of new China, the stability of Chinese rural society that had been achieved for thousands of years had been damaged. Years of war, the impact of mechanical production, and the wrong rule of the government of the republic of China all made the traditional Chinese countryside gradually disappear. In order to commemorate the past and guide the new China construction of the countryside, the author wrote this study of China's rural works.   In the traditional society, the intelligentsia became officials for the safety of themselves and their relatives. When they retired, they became gentry finally. Gentry may be retired officials or relatives of officials, or landlords with a simple education. In ancient China, the gentry, though not officials, acted as leaders of local autonomous groups, communicating with the government and conveying the wishes of the lower classes. Because of China's natural, self-sufficient economy, people always moved in small areas, forming population centers such as villages, towns and cities. The towns were the economic center, the cities were the political center, and the gentry generally lived in the cities. The city,the town and the village,which interrelate with each other, are different parts of a whole country.The gentry collected rents from the countryside and lent money in the city. Farmers pay rent on their land, plus handicraft industry, and are basically self-sufficient. Traditionally, Chinese people always long for the land, always worry about the homeland, hoping that they can go back when they are old or die,just like the Chinese saying said: the leaves would return to their roots. And the elderly Chinese officials would return home and use their prestige to benefit their hometown and future generations.   In this book, I, as a Chinese, follow the author's perspective and relearn the familiar Chinese rural society from a different view. Gentry is not unique to China. There are  English gentry in Britain, but the local gentry in China is perhaps the most special in the world. Like the author's , I think we need these ideas that are different from what we already know. If you want to learn more about traditional Chinese society and culture, this book is worth reading.We have to find our own solution from our inheritance of experience over thousands of years.