The Individualization Of Women' Fertility In Rural China

The fertility culture in rural China has been changing since 1960 th,indicated by constantly decline of fertility rate.Thus,most scholars believe that the new fertility culture is forming.But,there is a paradox.That is the coexistence of increasing sex ratio at birth and the forming of new fertility culture in rural China.This article is trying to reveal the latent logic under this paradox by researching women' deep thoughts on fertility and to present the whole picture of their fertility practice in daily life.The theory of Individualization provides us with an explicit explanation for this kind of practice.Case study is employed here to bring us inside rural women' fertility practice.And Xicun,a small village located at the west part of Shandong Province is selected as the object.With an agriculture history as along as 5000 years,Xicun is a representative of farming culture in China.At the same time,the trail of social changes in China since 1949 can also be presented clearly in Xicun.I did 2 months fieldwork in Xicun mainly observe their fertility activity.Additionally,the method of deep interview is used to learn of their vivid experiences about fertility and 18 women were interviewed.The interviewers distributed in different times,5 of them gave birth to their children in 1950th-1960 th,5 reproduced in 1980th-1990 th and the others in the21 century.I then analyse materials in qualitative ways with a focus on comparative analysis of fertility experience in different times.The findings are following.Obviously,with the spread of intensified risks all over the world,practice of fertility in Xicun is also impressed by these risks.Traditional principles and norms of fertility obeyed by people in Xicun do not work anymore.Instead of following the localized knowledge passed on by ancestors,they tend to define dos and don'ts according to criterion delivered to them by internet,experts,doctors and various kinds of Index.Reproduction is no longer an self-evident truth and the mysteriousness attached with reproduction have always been fading for the sake of prevailing scientific knowledge and medical technology's application.The women in Xicun start to count their benefits of giving birth to a child.They even start to reflect rationality of existed norms.All of these symbolized disenchantment of fertility.However,some factors are still observed,such as Preference of Male Baby,which is an indicator of patriarchy.The meaning of life is changing for Xicun women,especially for those young women who have ever worked in urban city as immigrate-workers.The value of ‘Guo Ri Zi' which is adored and observed by traditional Chinese peasants can not be identified by young women.Conflicts between different generations about cognition of fertility has resulted in intensified generation gaps between them,which in some ways endangering rural women' beliefs and belongings of their life.This article tries to present the interwining of patriarchy,national administration,market economy and gender during the process of individualization in China.We point out that market economy is primary impetus of individualization and individualization lead to fertility culture's change.National administration which had accelerated process of individualization by removing peasants from familism and replaced them under the ‘shadow' of nationalism from1950 th to1960th restrains development of individualization nowadays by imposing unnecessary controls such as the Hukou System and the lack of sound social welfare systems.Because of the strong nation,China'individualization is featured with different trails from western countries.Fertility practice as one of the important components of individualization also is impressed with this characteristic.The familism with a focus on traditional fertility culture including obsession of having more children and preference of male baby is back now in some sense.Gender perspective reveals complicate interweaving of gender,patriarchy,national administration and market economy.Sometimes,the issue of gender equality is employed by the nation to devastate familism.But,under the potential pressure of patriarchy,women have to take advantage of recessive resistances against national force in order to suit requirements of patriarchy.Here,women' body,as their function of giving birth,become fields where different forces have always been competing with each other.Lastly,this article discuss the phenomena of ‘grandparents rearing family' which are main family structure in rural China.We can see that ‘grandparents rearing family' present coexistence of new fertility culture and some part of conventional concepts.During the era of ‘Global Risk Society',it might be the best choice for rural family to defend their beliefs and adapt to the changing of society,although they have already been in tatters.From this article,we can get a more detailed picture of rural women' fertility practice in Rural China.In this way,we can predict rural women' fertility decisions with more solid evidences apart from those simple data from quantitative research.Rural women' individual experiences of fertility is connected with grand social structure,thus,we can understand their choice,sufferings and joys more clearly.