A Study Of Tian Rukang 's Academic History

By means of the case study pertaining to T’ien Ju-K’ang, this dissertation aims to inquire the history of Chinese ethnology. By narrating T’ien’s whole life and his studies, I analyze his anthropological thought and contribution, and re-evaluate his status in Chinese ethnology history. On this basis, I try to reflect the development of Chinese ethnology after the middle of20th century by the academic experience of T’ien Ju-K’ang.T’ien Ju-K’ang was born in1916when Anthropology was just introduced into China. T’ien started to learn Anthropology during the Anti-Japanese War when the Anthropology of China was settled to the south-west of China, and then he went to London for PhD. of Anthropology. T’ien went back to China in1950, and then he changed to the study of history because of the major reorganization in China. He went to plenty of top universities all around the world and made lots of high-quality studies after1979. However, his status in Chinese ethnology history is far cry from his contribution. Therefore, I clear up his academic life and achievements for introducing T’ien to academia and evaluating his academic status.My dissertation r will discuss from the following points:In chapter I, according to the simply introduction of T’ien Ju-K’ang’s family, I integrate the study experience in three period which are Beiping Normal University in1935-1937, Southwest United University in1938-1940when he took sociology as elective course and met Fei Hsiao-Tung, and London School of Economics in1945-1948.In chapter II, the dissertation analyze T’ien’s work experience in five period which are army experience in Anti-Japanese War, Sociology Investigative Research Center of Yunnan University and Yenching University in1940-1945, the field work about the social structure of Chinese in Sarawak, Malaysia in1948-1949, backing to China and taught in Zhejiang university and Fudan University and suffered in1950-1977, and went to plenty of top universities as researcher and visiting professor such as Cambridge University after1979. I analyze T’ien Ju-K’ang’s academic achievements from the study of Southeast Asia, ethnic groups and religious in Yunnan Province, Virtuous Women in Ming-Ching times In chapter III. And I emphasize the English achievements which are not published in Chinese by now.In the last chapter, by summarize T’ien’s anthropological thought, I locate his contribution to the ethnology academia and the academic status he deserve. At the end of the paper, I reflect the development of Chinese Ethnology after the middle of20th century according to the relation between T’ien Ju-K’ang’s Academic fate and historical background.The original intention of this dissertation is not a biography of T’ien Ju-K’ang, but regard him as the aim of field work, revaluating his status in Chinese ethnology history and reflecting the development of Chinese ethnology after the middle of20th century by thick description and analysis his life history and academic history. I am trying to be as objective and impersonal as possible, and revaluate T’ien’s status just from the Commenting about his research achievement.This dissertation is dedicated to T’ien Ju-K’ang.