INTRODUCTION

This chapter outlines the general socio-economic development of rural China during the Ming period. Because I use the term “socio-economic” in its precise meaning, I treat only the most salient aspects of social and economic developments insofar as they interact in the countryside. This chapter examines the ways in which economic factors were reflected in, and sometimes contributed to, the changes in social groupings and organizations during the Ming dynasty. Conversely, the ways in which social factors were reflected in, and sometimes contributed to, economic development are also examined. The taxation and corvée structure is portrayed in some detail. The social and institutional foundation of the li-chia system is discussed for two reasons: first, it offers a window through which we can come to understand some idiosyncratic features of the Ming socio-economic landscape; and second, it was in and of itself a significant cause of change. The possibilities for tax and corvee evasion or exemption were a major force behind social and economic developments during Ming times, as was the government's chronic inability to keep land and population records up to date. This shortcoming was recognized by officials at many levels of the government, and Ming officials implemented many reforms aimed at redistributing tax and corvée levies more equally and at facilitating tax collection. As a result of these changes, although the li-chia structure continued to exist well into the Ch'ing dynasty, by the early seventeenth century in many areas it was radically different in content from the institution envisioned by Chu Yüan-chang, the first Ming emperor.