My Dissertation - Questions and Propositions

What is the role of the state in China’s process of urbanization over the course of the 20th century, when the nation changes from a nationalist regime, to the Socialist, and then to the Post-socialist? How do the state, the society and the market shape, and is shaped, by this urbanization process? How has this process affect the urban and architectural landscape of China?

Four propositions

1. Over the course of the 20th century, and despite of regime changes, urbanization in China was, and is, a state-led process.
2. 
   The first proposition, the state’s totalitarian role in the process of urbanization, is attained through the dominance over land ownership and land development made possible by political campaigns, propaganda, and legislation.
3. 
   The redistribution of resources involved in the second proposition is the major cause of urban conflict in 20th century China and contributes to the making of a contentious state-society relationship.
4. 
   The built environment is the site of the urban conflict. It is shaped by, and contains, the contesting yet intertwined forces from the state, the society and the market.