The End of the Village: Planning the Urbanization of Rural China

The End of the Village analyzes the consequences of China's urbanization on rural life, revealing a fundamental rewriting of the nation's social contract. It explores the diminishing autonomy of rural populations and their subordination to larger urban networks, as well as the competing forces at work in reshaping villages. The book suggests a critical reappraisal of urbanization and its impact on rural life.

Format: Hardback
Length: 336 pages
Publication date: 08 June 2021
Publisher: University of Minnesota Press

Since the turn of the twenty-first century, China has undergone a significant expansion of its urbanization efforts, aimed at bridging the disparities between urban and rural areas. The End of the Village, a comprehensive study focused on the mountainous region of Chongqing, serves as an experimental site for the country's new urban development policies. This book delves into the profound transformation of urbanization and its implications for China's villagers. It unveils a fundamental rewriting of the nation's social contract, as villages that once orchestrated rural life and provided livelihoods are replaced by an increasingly urbanized landscape dominated by state institutions.

Throughout this comprehensive examination of China's "urban-rural coordination" policy, Nick R. Smith explores the diminishing autonomy of rural populations and their subordination to larger urban networks and shared administrative structures. Beyond Chongqing's urban centers, competing forces are at work, reshaping the social, political, and spatial organization of its villages. While municipal planners and policymakers strive to extend state power structures beyond the city limits, village leaders and inhabitants employ strategies such as collectivization, shareholding, real estate development, and migration to maintain control over their communities' uncertain futures.

As China endeavors to address the development challenges of past decades through rapid urban growth, such drastic transformations pose a threat to displace the existing ways of life for over 600 million residents. The End of the Village offers an unprecedented insight into the country's contentious shift in urban planning and policy, shedding light on the potential repercussions of these transformations on China's rural communities.

Dimension: 216 x 140 x 38 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781517910914