Photo: Hsiuwen Liu
Book Monograph
Masculine Compromise
Choi, S.Y.P. & Peng, Y. 2016. Masculine Compromise: Migration, Family and Gender in China. California: University of California Press. 179 pages. Paperback, Hardback, E-book
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About the Book
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Drawing on the life stories of 266 migrants in South China, Choi and Peng examine the effect of mass rural-to-urban migration on family and gender relationships, with a specific focus on changes in men and masculinities. They show how migration has forced migrant men to renegotiate their roles as lovers, husbands, fathers, and sons. They also reveal how migrant men make masculine compromises: they strive to preserve the gender boundary and their symbolic dominance within the family by making concessions on marital power and domestic division of labor, and by redefining filial piety and fatherhood. The stories of these migrant men and their families reveal another side to China’s sweeping economic reform, modernization, and grand social transformations.
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What Did Other Scholars Say About the Book?
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The authors introduce the worthwhile concept of the “masculine compromise” …(The concept) encapsulates how migration has forced rural men to concede certain aspects of male dominance within their families and marital relations even as they find ways to symbolically maintain their superiority within the shifting gender hierarchy. Drawing upon rich narratives that speak to intimacy and emotionality within men’s experiences as husbands/partners, fathers, and sons… this book makes a significant, compelling addition to the scholarship on family life and gender relations in contemporary China (Leslie Wang 2018, American Journal of Sociology)
Masculine Compromise presents a true-to- life depiction of the experience of rural men living on the margins of urban society. It does so with subtlety and sensitivity, quietly documenting men’s private aspirations and personal failures... (Julia Chuang 2018, Contemporary Sociology) The primary contribution of this book is Choi and Peng’s insightful framework of “masculine compromise,” which they use throughout the book to vividly describe the strategies and practices of migrant men. ... Choi and Peng clearly illustrate that these compromises actually help maintain traditional gender ideologies, and sometimes serve to maintain male dominance within families. (Wen-Ling Kung and Kate Henley Averett 2018, Gender and Society) The conceptualization of ‘masculine compromise’ serves well as a feminist framework. It captures the tension and negotiation of masculine ideals articulated through the men’s life stories, intersecting with a wider context of structural inequalities in relation to class and gender. (Xiaodong Lin 2018, Sociology) [T]his well-written, persuasive and enjoyable book is a timely and much-needed contribution to the literature of rural-to-urban migration in China. It would be useful for researchers who are interested in gender and family relationships, manhood and masculinity, and domestic migration in China. (Jingyu Mao 2018, Sociological Research Online) Masculine Compromise is a valuable con- tribution to our understanding of the vast cohort of male Chinese migrants as they attempt to navigate changing identities as husbands and fathers. (Jonathan Unger 2018, The China Journal) 本文认为,该书最有洞见和论证最为精彩的发现,是揭示出新城乡流动模式通过不同方式和程度 的男性气质妥协机制,导致了农民工家庭的一系列复杂变迁和不同家庭之间的差异。这一研究发现促使既 有研究从家庭构成述向家庭关系建构过程分析深入,以及从“片段式”的家庭生活观察向呈现家庭变迁 的复杂过程和结果差异转型。(王王欧、王天夫 2019 《妇女研究论丛》) [T]he book deftly presents theories, empirically rich, and also rather comprehensible to readers. I would strongly recommend it to scholars who engage in gender and migration studies in China and beyond, as well as anyone who is interested in migration, family and gender issues. (Xiao Ma n.d., International Institute for Asian Studies) Rich in detail and lively in style, the engaging ethnographic and qualitative accounts serve the purpose of the books well to destigmatise prevalent stereotypes and showcase the diversity of the “floating population” in post-socialist China. The book is written in an accessible style, which deserves to be read widely beyond the academia. (Yang Hu 2019, Nan Nü) |