Social Sciences in China (Chinese Edition)

No. 6, 2024

The Social History Research and Theoretical Contributions of Hou Wailu

(Abstract)

Liang Tao

Hou Wailu’s scholarly endeavors in ancient Chinese history have led to a nuanced interpretation of Marx’s Asiatic mode of production. He delineated a distinct “familystate” reform trajectory for ancient China, contrasting with the Western “familyprivate propertystate” pathway. Analyzing and explaining societal structures under this reformist lens, Hou connected China’s historical context with Marxism. This integration not only enriched Marxist historical theory with Chinese empirical data but also bore methodological significance. Hou underscored the preeminence of stateowned feudal land in early feudal society and advocated for a clear demarcation between ownership rights, possession rights, and usage rights within the landlord class—categorized into royal landlords, noble landlords, and commoner landlords. The late stages of feudal society, during the Ming and Qing dynasties, witnessed nascent capitalist elements in regions like Jiangnan, alongside burgeoning Enlightenment thought. Hou affirmed the applicability of Marx’s social development theory to Chinese society, advocating for an analytical summation and exploration that embraces both its universalities and particularities.