史料、方法与视角--走出江南城镇化水平研究的困境

Historical Sources,Methods,and Perspectives: Beyond the Predicament in Studying Jiangnan's Urbanization in Late Imperial China

江南城镇化水平是我国江南城市史、人口史与经济史的重要研究内容之一,在饶济凡与施坚雅理论色彩浓厚的总体性研究之后,个案的实证研究虽有较大的发展,却也存在以偏概全的问题,"城镇"等相关概念界定的模糊也影响到新资料的开发利用。扭转这种状态的关键在于:首先,转换视角,将研究目光延伸到民国时期乃至20世纪中叶;其次,以社会科学的新方法作为资料解读的新手段,建立近代两个时间横断面的基准数据,作为江南城镇化发展水平的参照系。如此方有可能辨析清楚近代以前某一时期江南城镇化的实际水平。

As an important part of the research on Jiangnan( Yangzi Delta),the study of its urbanization,involving cities,towns,population,and economy,has yielded fruitful outcomes. In addition to the general theoretical framework provided by Gilbert Rozman and G. William Skinner,some breakthroughs have been made through certain case studies in recent years. Yet there is still room for improvement,especially in defining the 'cities and towns'in Jiangnan with valid sources. Some studies also show the tendency of overgeneralization. Consequently,it remains unclear about the actual situation of the cities and towns in Jiangnan and Jiangnan's overall urbanization level. To overcome these limitations,the author suggests two ways. One is to shift research focus by expanding the study from late imperial to modern period; the latter can extend from the 19 th century all the way to the mid 20 th century. The other is to adopt alternative perspectives by borrowing new methods from social sciences so that scholars can develop new interpretations of the sources. He also believes that it might be useful to create two contrasting examples respectively from the late imperial and modern periods for comparison in order to cast in relief the actual level of Jiangnan's urban development in different historical periods.