Research Outline of the Tang-Song Social Transformation

This book examines social transformation during the Tang-Song period by focusing on the emergence and development of the "e;society of moneyed elite"e; in ancient China. Specifically, the author tries to shed light on three important theoretical questions. First, how to understand social change from the perspective economic history; second, how to construct scientifically-informed causal explanations of historical processes and events; and third, how to remedy the shortcomings of previous studies that emphasize the contrasts between the two dynasties while overlooking the continuity between them.