Skip to main content Skip to search Skip to search

History China

The Power of Words

Literacy and Revolution in South China, 1949-95

by (author) Glen Peterson

Publisher
UBC Press
Initial publish date
Nov 2011
Category
China, History
  • eBook

    ISBN
    9780774842013
    Publish Date
    Nov 2011
    List Price
    $32.95
  • Paperback / softback

    ISBN
    9780774806121
    Publish Date
    Mar 1998
    List Price
    $34.95
  • Hardback

    ISBN
    9780774806114
    Publish Date
    Jun 1997
    List Price
    $95.00

Classroom Resources

Where to buy it

Description

This book is a social and political history of the struggle for literacy in rural China from 1949 until 1994. It aims to show how China's revolutionary leaders conceived and promoted literacy in the countryside and how villagers made use of the literacy education and schools they were offered. Rather than focusing narrowly on educational issues alone, Peterson examines the larger significance of P.R.C. literacy efforts by situating the literacy movement within the broad context of major themes and issues in the social and political history of post-1949 China. Following the recent trend toward regional and local history, this book focuses on the linguistically diverse, socially complex, and politically awkward southeastern coastal province of Guangdong. As well, Peterson conducted interviews with local officials and teachers in several Guangdong counties in 1988 and 1989.

About the author

Awards

  • Winner, K.D. Srivastava Award, UBC Press

Contributor Notes

Glen Peterson is an assistant professor in the Department of History, University of British Columbia.

Editorial Reviews

... fine work ... this is a carefully researched and lucidly written discussion of an important topic in PRC history, It deserves to be read not only by students of education, but by anyone interested in the post-1949 social and mental transformation of the Chinese countryside.

The China Journal, Issue 41

... until now, [China's post-1949 literacy programs] have escaped the wide-ranging analysis which Peterson provides... Peterson offers a nuanced analysis of elite and vocational literacy in a social and political context... This book offers a readable, succinct, and broadly informed perspective ... . an important contribution to anyone interested in Chinese or Third World development.

Pacific Affairs, volume 72:2, Summer 1999

It is to the author's credit that he is able to weave his discussion of different issues ... into a coherent narrative that reinforces the importance of adding historical context to contemporary policy discussions. Furthermore, the primary source documentation that he has gathered from within Guangdong province is both significant and impressive. For all of these reasons, this volume is an important contribution to the field of Chinese education and should be of interest to historians, social scientists and comparative educators who work in this area.

The China Quarterly