A Study On The Family

The Wuzhong Beis, which is an influential and privileged family in Suzhou, has multiplied through generations since they settled in Suzhou in the middle Ming Dynasty. The struggle for the family to pursue wealth and honor has continued to the modern times. As a prominent family in Suzhou, the Beis spares no efforts in compiling genealogies, building temples to worship ancestors and establishing free estates. This is not only one of the reflections of their prominence but also is a means to strengthen their cohesion and maintain their distinguished status. Facing the risks and challenges of falling population of children, untimely death and no offspring, the Beis mainly takes the ways of adoption and concubinage to keep reproduction and development. However, there is a great difference on choosing the two ways between civilians and people with fame, which is also the immanent cause for the Beis establishing free estates, providing helps to the clansmen and coordinating the relationship among family members.In the genealogy of the Beis, there is a relatively objective description on the origin of the family, the adoption of the opposite sex and the female matters and so on. The compilation of the genealogy is affected less by the traditional patriarchal ideology. This shows that the clan consciousness is keeping pace with the times. Most of the values advocated in the genealogy are traditional ethical concepts and traditional Chinese outstanding cultures. But such advocate is not mandatory. The controlling relationships between the patriarchal clan organizations and the clansmen are relatively loose. The help given by the Beis’ free estates are primarily reflected in two aspects: “support” and “educate”. They not only finance the imperial examinations but also pay attention to their clansmen business. Since modern times, there are democratic and scientific factors in the management of the free estates. This is in connection with the merchants’ status in the family as well as their introduction of the modern enterprise management method into the family management.The family immigration and interaction between Suzhou and Shanghai has a huge influence on the Beis’ prosperity and development since modern times. The establishment of modern Shanghai’s economic and cultural center position provides more possibilities and broader space for the development of the Beis’ family. The Beis’ clansmen introduce the capital in Shanghai and new concepts into Suzhou through family immigration and interaction between Suzhou and Shanghai. And this not only maintains the Beis’ status in Suzhou but also promotes Suzhou modernization development. All of these can’t do without the support from the family and the interrelation among clansmen.