Kinship, Practice, and the Concept of Chinese Lineage： A Historical Anthropology Case Study of Xiucai Village, Yilan.
Date Issued
2007
Date
2007
Author(s)
Chu, Chia-Chiao
DOI
zh-TW
Abstract
No matter what the transformation of the key concept of anthropology and the history of anthropological theory have displayed, and no matter how they have been used to the anthropological analysis of Chinese society, it is not difficult to find out that in consciousness of problem and the perceiving angle, there are ”structure functional” approaches in contrast to “cultural symbolic” ones. This research from the very beginning makes an analysis of such paradigms shift in anthropological kinship studies , and then tries to take the expression of “Chinese lineage”(宗族現象) as an example to denote “the double axes” of this research - the consciousness of concept of historical anthropology, as well as the extension of B. Malinowski’s concept of kinship. Briefly speaking, Malinowski’s most important contributions in anthropological kinship studies are the detailed analysis of discrepancy between the corresponding parent-child social relations and biological relations. In the study of Chinese lineage, in examining the discrepancy, some fruitful discussions and results of social practice could be made in Chinese cultural symbol between the parent-child social relations and the corresponding of this kinning progress in reproduction. And some kinds of corresponding relations depend on in the progress of practice, as well as how this kinds of corresponding relations, may be considered an unique culture order, or the symbolic relations. But it is to be regretted that the state of anthropological kinship study mentioned above still within sight but beyond reach. The aim of this research is to suggest those who do kinship study in anthropology that it’s time to consider the synthetic paradigms and use the better research approach.
The method used in my research is not only participant observation - like traditional anthropological field studies, but also takes the plenty writing material, such as official histories, biographies, local gazetteers or the local chronicles, the paleography writings, the genealogies, the unofficial history…etc., which can offer the help for understanding the immigration and construction of a patrilineal surname village. In the ethnographical analysis of my research object - Xiucai village, Yilan, I used an anthropological holistic view in dealing with several main dimensions of life practices, such as the developments and segments of lineage, lineage’s business management and performance, the types of economic actions, the forms of belief, the ways of ancestor worship, as well as social education and social care. And I point out that although many past works of anthropological studies in Chinese kinship may contribute a lot, most of them still enmeshed in arguing the significance and difference of “structure functional” and ”cultural symbolic” respectively. From the view of consciousness of the problem, I try to explain that the “structure functional” and the “cultural symbolic” ways has deviated processing directions from the past till now, and they offer nothing good for anthropology but also have limitations and the insufficiencies in kinship studies.
On the concept foundations of passing research achievements like the “Qi”(氣) or “the father plants the bone and the mother adds the flesh”(父骨母肉), I take other factors into consideration such as “power” under the Confucianism’s affections. Through the view of practical theory and the structure of the conjuncture in the context of historical anthropology, the concept of “blood vessels”(血脈) may be regarded as the most important kind of performative structure in the representation of “the Qi”, which is the prescriptive structure and cultural significance in Chinese culture. And in this research I propose that “self-realization and surmounting” is not only the dynamic practice process which is some kind of feedback mechanism to reshape the structure, but also is the key cultural symbol that can articulate the practice actions, which is the “blood vessels” and the cultural significance, which is “Qi”.
The expounding presented here demonstrates that no matter what dimensions of social practices in Xiucai Village – economics, subsistence, belief and religion, etc., the more succeessful in dynamic practicing of “the self-realization and surmounting”, the more perfect manifestation of Chinese lineage consciousness is. Besides, when the concept of dynamic practicing of “the self-realization and surmounting” is stronger, the lineage segment has higher position in village and can have more lineage members. Of course, there must be one or more key factors to make the articulation continue. At end, this research points out that “collective memory” is a key factor which has vital status in replacing or rearrange the cultural order to make historical structure change
Subjects
the self-realization and surmounting
Confucianism
practice
structure of the conjuncture
historical anthropology
collective memory
SDGs
Type
other
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