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This introductory course will familiarize students with the major dynamics of political and social change in contemporary China since 1949. The course will be divided chronologically into four main topics: 1. The contested processes of nation-state making in modern China before 1949; 2. The making of the socialist system during the Mao Years and its dismantling since 1978; 3. The Reform Era transformation to a market economy with Chinese characteristics; 4. The dynamic relationships among the state, market and society since the new millennium. Students will explore how scholars have explained major political and social changes with reference to individual and collective rationalities, specific organizational and institutional arrangements, and specific strategic and cultural mechanisms of Chinese political and social habits.