Jean-Baptiste Pettier | Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (original) (raw)

Peer-reviewed Articles by Jean-Baptiste Pettier

L’Homme, 2019

En China las casamenteras son una antigua institución social. Fueron impuestas durante mucho tiem... more En China las casamenteras son una antigua institución social. Fueron impuestas durante mucho tiempo por el Estado imperial para controlar la moral y las familias. Consideradas a principios del siglo XX como un freno a la emancipación de las nuevas generaciones, y por tanto como una de las causas del atraso de China, fueron prohibidas posteriormente por el régimen comunista. Sin embargo, la práctica de la intermediación matrimonial nunca ha cesado realmente y las reformas económicas llevadas a cabo desde los años ochenta parecen haber acelerado su reinvención bajo nuevas formas. Aunque durante mucho tiempo fueron indispensables para cualquier matrimonio «honesto», las casamenteras de hoy se asocian más bien a la falta de autonomía personal de los candidatos al matrimonio. La evolución de su posición social renueva los cuestionamientos teóricos clásicos sobre el lugar del individuo o de los sentimientos personales en la elección de cónyuge en China. Este artículo propone abordarlo a partir de la etnografía de una agencia matrimonial en la ciudad de Chengdú.

Autrepart, 2018

El periodo de reformas económicas en China que inició en los años ochenta ha sido reiteradamente ... more El periodo de reformas económicas en China que inició en los años ochenta ha sido reiteradamente asociado a un movimiento de liberación sexual y de reafirmación de las identidades de género. La prostitución y la pornografía se han hecho cada vez más visibles en el espacio público, dada la generalización de las prácticas de corrupción al servicio de los hombres con poder de decisión. En este contexto, surge en la opinión pública china una dura crítica al irrealismo de los ideales de la era maoísta, pero también se expresa una preocupación por la supuesta occidentalización de las nuevas generaciones. El punto en común más notable que comparten estos debates es el rechazo del constructivismo en favor de la aceptación generalizada de que el deseo sexual, sobre todo en el caso de los hombres, es una «necesidad natural». Hay dos morales que se oponen, una que defiende el control del deseo y otra que promueve su satisfacción. Así, se plantea la cuestión del deseo sexual, entre animalidad y civilización, considerándolo a la vez normal y censurable, convirtiéndolo en una cuestión de identidad moral china.

Qualitative Studies, 2023

The radical transformation of Chinese society in the previous decades has greatly improved the ma... more The radical transformation of Chinese society in the previous decades has greatly improved the material lives of most people, but has also led to skyrocketing levels of inequality, and has subjected Chinese youths to unprecedented levels of socioeconomic competition. Helping them to succeed in this competitive world necessitates both care and control from their families. This is evident in their scholarly education, but also in the pressure they receive to marry early and well. Both the pressure on their education and on their path towards marriage is imposed on them in the name of support. While many analyses of this situation tie it predominantly to a Confucian ethos imbued into Chinese culture, this article suggests an alternative way to analyze this situation: The revolutionary opposition to inherited privilege paradoxically transformed higher education and marriage into ultra-competitive open markets. Rather than imputing a culturally bounded explanation for this phenomenon, I maintain that the authoritarian-caring parenting style observable in present-day China reflects a situation which finds parallels in other late post-revolutionary societies: the intensification of the educational pressure put on the haves in order to distinguish themselves from the have-nots.

Social Analysis, 2022

Where is the political located? Since the early 2000s, the phenomenon of 'marriage corners' has m... more Where is the political located? Since the early 2000s, the phenomenon of 'marriage corners' has mushroomed in city parks all over China. It consists of public gatherings attended by middle-to uppermiddle-class parents attempting to find a partner for their child. The competitiveness of these gatherings and the vocabulary used by the participants when evaluating each other reflect political tensions of Chinese society without articulating them. Exploring this tension, the article argues for attending to the political ramifications of spaces where politics are silenced and denied. Hence, these marriage corners are examined as 'paradoxical agoras', that is, as constrained public spaces where politics are neither discussed nor decided, but rather embodied and practiced.

Comparative Studies in Society and History, 2022

Chinese practices of matchmaking have been controversial for over a century. Their continued tran... more Chinese practices of matchmaking have been controversial for over a century. Their continued transformations reveal a complex nexus of sentimental and material dimensions in the marriage-decision process at the heart of the negotiations between families and in their selections of proper candidates. This interplay between personal sentiments, concrete considerations, and the desire for success makes marriage controversial, as “love” is claimed and proclaimed at the same time. Moral debates around materialism, which have reverberated through the public sphere over the last decade, show how “love” acts as a tool of social reproduction while it also expresses sincere aspirations for an emotionally satisfying life. In comparative perspective, the complex of romantic love examined here reveals a recent, original synthesis of the tradition of parental arrangement and the political question of the place of love in modernity. The paper elucidates one of the contradictions within Chinese society today: the family remains central, but wider trends of individualization continue to unfold. A multifaceted understanding of love clarifies how it can bind families together while it also discourages others from pursuing romance.

Autrepart, 2018

The period of economic reform which began in China in the 1980s has been regu- larly understood a... more The period of economic reform which began in China in the 1980s has been regu- larly understood as one of sexual liberation, but also of reassertion of gender identities. Prostitution and pornography have become publicly visible, in particular through the spread of corrupt practices among male decision-makers. In this context, the unrealistic character of the Maoist era ideals has been widely criticized in Chinese public debate. The most notable commonality in these debates is the rejection of a constructionist perspective on human nature, with a general acceptance of the notion that sexual desire, particularly male desire, is a “natural need”. Two morals, one calling for the control of desire, the other calling for its accomplishment, stand in opposition here. Desire lies between animality and civilization; both normal and reprehensible, it has become a matter of Chinese moral identity.

Autrepart, 2018

La période de réformes économiques qui s’est ouverte à partir des années 1980 en Chine a été asso... more La période de réformes économiques qui s’est ouverte à partir des années 1980 en Chine a été associée de manière récurrente à la fois à une période de libération sexuelle et de réaf- firmation des identités sexuées. Prostitution et pornographie ont gagné une place publique de plus en plus prégnante, par la généralisation de pratiques de corruption au service de déci- deurs masculins. Le débat public chinois a dans ce contexte produit une critique sévère de l’irréalisme des idéaux de l’ère maoïste, tout en s’inquiétant de l’occidentalisation sup- posée des nouvelles générations. Le point commun le plus notable à ces débats est le rejet du constructivisme par l’acceptation généralisée du désir sexuel, en particulier masculin, comme « besoin naturel ». Deux morales, l’une prônant la maîtrise du désir, l’autre son accomplissement, s’y opposent. Le discours qui s’est imposé situe ainsi la ques- tion du désir sexuel entre animalité et civili- sation en le considérant à la fois comme normal et comme répréhensible, et en en fai- sant ainsi un enjeu de l’identité morale chinoise.

Critical Asian Studies, 2021

To be considered worthy of society's protection is not the objective consequence of an inherent q... more To be considered worthy of society's protection is not the objective consequence of an inherent quality but the result of a social process. This article examines this observation through the case of canine welfare in China. Popular defense of dogs against brutalization and consumption, as well as state regulations, have become common in China in recent years, generating conflicts over the value attributed to dogs. To understand the circumstances behind and broader implications of activists' support for protecting dogs, this article identifies elements that are determinant: framing; prioritization; the relationship between protectors and protected; and the socio-political background of these campaigns.

Ethnography, 2020

Caught in the context of a highly competitive development process, within the framework of a poli... more Caught in the context of a highly competitive development process, within the framework of a policy which limited their reproductive capacity to a single child, PRC urban families have, in recent decades, attached growing importance to their child's education, aiming to lead them to professional and personal success. This, however, also had an impact on the capacities of many young adults to marry early. In this context, the phenomenon of "marriage corners" mushroomed in large cities all over China beginning in the mid-2000s. Within China, this new practice generated criticism. These markets are seen as displaying conservative forms of marriage arrangement, the disregarding of romantic love, and forms of intergenerational power organization that may be considered backwards. However, by the criticisms it generates but as well the forms of relationships that it displays, the phenomenon can allow for a better understanding of the transformation of inter-generational relationships amongst urban middle-class, and on the norms framing the lives of the new generation.

Environmental History, 2019

L'Homme, 2019

Matchmakers are an ancient social institution in China whose services were long imposed by the Im... more Matchmakers are an ancient social institution in China whose services were long imposed by the Imperial government as a means to control families and social mores. Considered as an obstacle to the emancipation of the new generations at the turn of the twentieth century, and as such as a cause of China’s backwardness, they were forbidden by the Communist regime. However, the practice of matchmaking never completely disappeared, and the economic reforms implemented since the 1980s seem to have accelerated its reinvention. Whereas traditional matchmakers were an indispensable part of any “respectable” marriage, today, they connote a lack of personal autonomy on the part of the bride and groom. The rein- vented social position of matchmakers again raises the classical theoretical question of the role of the individual and of personal feelings in the choice of a spouse in China. The present article addresses this question through an ethnographic analysis of a marriage agency in the city of Chengdu.

L’Homme, 2019

Les marieuses sont en Chine une institution sociale ancienne. Elles furent longtemps imposées par... more Les marieuses sont en Chine une institution sociale ancienne. Elles furent longtemps imposées par l’État impérial afin de contrôler les mœurs et les familles. Considérées comme un frein à l’émancipation des nouvelles générations au début du xxe siècle, et donc comme l’une des causes du retard chinois, elles furent par la suite interdites par le régime communiste. La pratique de l’intermédiation matrimoniale n’a cependant jamais vraiment cessé et les réformes économiques conduites, depuis les années 1980, semblent avoir accéléré leur réinvention sous de nouvelles formes. Longtemps indispensables à tout mariage « honnête », les marieuses, aujourd’hui, sont au contraire plutôt associées à un manque d’autonomie personnelle chez les candidats au mariage. L’évolution de leur position sociale renouvelle les questionnements théoriques classiques sur la place de l’individu ou des sentiments personnels dans le choix du conjoint en Chine. Cet article propose de le montrer à partir de l’ethnographie d’une agence matrimoniale de la ville de Chengdu.

Études Chinoises, 2017

Le vingtième siècle a été marqué en Chine par les débats sur la place de la famille dans le choix... more Le vingtième siècle a été marqué en Chine par les débats sur la place de la famille dans le choix du conjoint. En s’émancipant des générations antérieures, les nouvelles pourraient, pensait-on, gagner en caractère et en indépendance d’esprit, s’affirmer comme de véritables individus, et permettre à leur pays de progresser vers la modernité. Dès les années 1930, la République soviétique chinoise du Jiangxi interdisait l’intermédiation matrimoniale. Pourtant, la littérature scientifique montre que ces pratiques n’ont jamais cessé. Et elles connaissent depuis les années 1980 un regain visible de vigueur, agences matrimoniales, réunions parentales et émissions de rencontre connaissant un succès évident. Au point d’être aujourd’hui présentées sous le jour fataliste d’une institution inévitable dans la société chinoise. Cet article revient sur le rôle central que joue dans ce discours la figure de la marieuse et propose une analyse critique de la manière dont les pratiques de présentation du conjoint actuelles sont symboliquement rattachées à la figure des marieuses de la Chine ancienne.
************************************ ENGLISH ABSTRACT ************************************ “The Fate of Meiren: Uses of the History of Traditional Matchmakers as a Justification for Marriage Brokering in Contemporary China.” The twentieth century was marked in China by debates on the place of the family in the choice of a spouse. By emancipating themselves from previous generations, the new generations could—so it was thought—gain in character and independence of spirit, assert themselves as true individuals, and allow their country to progress towards modernity. Beginning in the 1930s, the Chinese Soviet Republic (the Jiangxi Soviet) forbade marriage brokering. However, scholarly literature shows that these practices have never ceased. And, since the 1980s, they have experienced a visible revival of vigor, with the obvious success of matrimonial agencies, parental meetings, and match- making programs, to the point where they are presented today as the ultimate functioning of an inevitable institution of Chinese society. This article revisits the central role played by the figure of the marriage broker in this discourse and proposes a critical analysis of the way in which the present practices of the introduction of the marriage partner are symbolically related to the figure of the matchmaker of ancient China.
************************************ 中文摘要 ************************************ 裴剑白(Jean-Baptiste Pettier) : “媒人的命運:用中國古代媒婆的歷史來支持當代婚姻中介的合理性”。關於家庭在配偶選擇中的地位的爭論，在20世紀的中國是一個引人注目的話題。我們曾經以為，新一代的中國人脫離了前輩人的束縛，就能够表現個人性格和獨立的精神，作為真正的個體而被認可，並且推動國家往現代性發展。從二十世紀30年代起，江西省的蘇聯式的中國共和國禁止婚姻中介。然而，科學研究文獻卻表明該活動其實從未中斷，並且在80年代有過一次令人矚目的發展熱潮，婚姻介紹所、父母相親和電視相親節目，都曾經大獲成功。以至於今天的中國社會相當宿命地不得不使用婚姻中介。本文將回溯媒婆形象在這一論題中所扮演的核心角色，並且分析當今結婚對象介紹這個活動，事實上乃象徵性地與中國古代的媒婆角色緊密相連。

Anthropology of Consciousness, 2016

From an outsider's perspective, today's Popular China might appear as a self-confident and triump... more From an outsider's perspective, today's Popular China might appear as a self-confident and triumphant country. However, a large-scale examination of the country's recent moral controversies reveals a very different picture, one that has much to do with the widespread local public perception of an ongoing “moral crisis” (Kleinman et al., 2011), whose examination requires careful attention placed on the ethical and affective aspects of the everyday lives of today's Chinese people. In this article, I propose to examine the anguish that Chinese bachelor youths and their concerned parents undergo and express, as they are confronted with the difficult process of finding a suitable mate for marriage. I examine the fears their celibacy generates, the mutual distrust that participants taking part in bachelors’ parents gatherings demonstrate, and the disputes these encounters engage. I analyze the moral world of today's urban China from the perspective of the very feelings and affects that pervade it. Highlighting the ways in which my interlocutors shared their emotions with me along the course of my fieldwork, carried out in the cities of Beijing and Chengdu, I will insist on the importance of these affects within an anthropological approach. The moral sensitivities contained in the maintenance of the economic and social situations of one's family reveal themselves as an exceptional resource for knowledge. By examining the political economy of sentiments within which parents and their children find themselves entrapped, I argue that we can gain a deeper understanding of the concrete consequences of today's societal transformations.

Genre, sexualité & société, Jan 1, 2010

Cet article questionne la pertinence de l’emploi du terme de « révolution sexuelle » à propos des... more Cet article questionne la pertinence de l’emploi du terme de « révolution sexuelle » à propos des évolutions des pratiques sexuelles des jeunes Chinois-es ayant grandis dans la Chine des réformes économiques lancées dans les années 1980. Il propose une perspective historique sur les évolutions de l’encadrement social de la sexualité en Chine au cours du vingtième siècle. Puis il s’attache à montrer la façon dont, loin de constituer une « libération » contre la répression étatique de la sexualité, la forte resexuation du monde social chinois contemporain s’inscrit, de fait, dans le cadre de l’ouverture économique libérale et de la compétition pour la réussite individuelle que celle-ci a engendrée.
*********************** ENGLISH ABSTRACT *********************** This article questions the relevance of the use of the expression “sexual revolution” when talking about the transformations of the sexual practices of the young Chinese girls and boys who grew up with the economic reforms initiated in the 1980s. The article also suggests an historical perspective for the changes in the social monitoring of sexuality in China during the twentieth century. Far from being a “liberation” against the repression of sexuality by the state, the strong re-sexuation of the present Chinese social world is actually right in line with the liberal economic opening and the competition for individual success it create.

PhD Thesis by Jean-Baptiste Pettier

RÉSUMÉ : Cette étude ethnographique, conduite à Pékin et à Chengdu entre 2006 et 2010, examine l... more RÉSUMÉ :
Cette étude ethnographique, conduite à Pékin et à Chengdu entre 2006 et 2010, examine les transformations du marché matrimonial en Chine urbaine à travers le prisme d’une institution sociale : le xiāngqīn, une forme d’intermédiation traditionnelle, aujourd’hui réinventée. À travers une série de lieux (des agences matrimoniales, des réunions parentales et de célibataires), elle réexamine certains enjeux clés du vingtième siècle (l’opposition aux mariages arrangés, la place politique de l’amour, le rôle social des marieuses, l’importance des relations sociales (guānxì), le rôle de pensées traditionnelles comme le "confucianisme", etc.) Le phénomène est saisi dans son actualité et sa transversalité, rendant compte de ses dimensions sociales, économiques, historiques, et conférant une attention particulière à ce que je nomme "l’échelle affective" de la recherche. J’y mets au jour des "politiques sentimentales", qui aident à penser les discriminations sociales et culturelles qui s’y jouent. Le travail s’attarde sur les débats intellectuels concernant la place de l’amour dans la société chinoise, notamment dans le cadre du processus de modernisation, et sur leurs usages contemporains, dont j’opère une analyse critique. À travers eux, comme à travers les débats moraux qui occupent aujourd’hui l’actualité de ce pays, les transformations contemporaines du sujet chinois sont observées. L’étude de ce phénomène permet ainsi d’explorer les conséquences sociales et personnelles des transformations politiques, économiques, et démographiques, expérimentées par la société chinoise depuis trente ans, et la manière dont elles ont considérablement accru la pression sur les jeunes générations.

ABSTRACT:
This ethnographic study, based on fieldwork research carried out in Beijing and Chengdu between 2006 and 2010, explores the transformation of the urban marriage market in China. It does so through the prism of one social institution : the xiāngqīn, a traditional form of marriage intermediation, which is presently undergoing a reinvention. Through a series of places (marriage agencies, parental and bachelors’ gatherings), this study examines a number of twentieth century key issues (the opposition to arranged marriages, the political place of love, the importance of social ties (guānxì), the role of traditional thoughts like "confucianism", etc.) The study examines this phenomenon in its actuality and its transversality, giving accounts of its social, economic, and historical dimensions, and awarding a particular importance to what I name the "affective scope" of the research. The study reveals the "sentimental politics" behind it, as they are helpful to think the social and cultural discriminations it holds. It pays careful attention to the intellectual debates concerning the place awarded to love in the Chinese society, which have been particularly relevant through the modernization process. Furthermore, it elaborates a critical analysis of their present uses. Through them, and through the omnipresent moral debates on today's China’s public stage, the transformation of the Chinese subject is observed. The study of this phenomenon therefore allows an exploration of the social and personal consequences of the political, economic, and demographic changes experienced by Chinese society from thirty years onward and the pressure it induced on the younger generations.

Peer-reviewed Book chapters by Jean-Baptiste Pettier

Nothing Personal ?! Essays on Affect, Gender and Queerness., 2022

Is there a methodology to deal with situations that do not turn out as planned? Can and should yo... more Is there a methodology to deal with situations that do not turn out as planned? Can and should you explicitly deal with what fieldwork, or your engagements with the world, do to you, especially if it is hurtful? What should you do with the evaluations others make of you or that you make of them? Can they themselves become useful material for reflecting on our research and engagements with the world? This introduction text to the methodology section of the Nothing Personal?! book makes a few steps on the way to address these questions…

Emotionen. Ein interdisziplinäres Handbuch [Emotions. An interdisciplinary handbook]., 2019

Capdeville-Zeng & Ortis (dir.). Les institutions de l’amour : cour, amour, mariage en Asie et dans l’océan Indien., 2018

Tout autant qu'à des discours orientalistes affirmant que les sentiments personnels sont peu impo... more Tout autant qu'à des discours orientalistes affirmant que les sentiments personnels sont peu importants dans le choix du conjoint en dehors des sociétés occidentales, les recherches conduites sur la société chinoise contemporaine confrontent le chercheur à des discours chinois très codifiés sur l'importance des sentiments en Chine. Par ceux-ci, les personnes rencontrées se situent moralement et se distinguent en affirmant l'importance qu'« elles », à la différence d'« autres », accorderaient ou non à l'amour. La situation de rencontre avec l'ethnographe contribue ainsi à produire des discours généraux sur « la Chine », mais aussi des manières de s'en distinguer. Le choix du conjoint et les modalités affectives de ce choix font partie de ces discours parfois très balisés, au sein desquels accorder ou non de l'importance à l'« amour » est un enjeu essentiel. Que faire de ces discours idéaux, et comment se traduisent‑ils en situation réelle pour les jeunes gens considérés comme en âge de se marier mais encore célibataires ? À partir d'une recherche conduite auprès de jeunes gens en âge de se marier et à la recherche d'un conjoint, ce chapitre examine la complexité des situations individuelles, leur diversité, et les ambivalences affectives que ces situations produisent. ************************************ ENGLISH ABSTRACT ************************************ "Affective Ambivalences.
Mate Choice and Sentiments in Contemporary Urban China"
Working on the issue of sentiments in China confronts the researcher to two types of discourses: orientalist ones that tend to deny the importance of personal sentiments outside of the Western world, but also internal Chinese discourses concerning sentiments in China. With these second ones, some of the informants situate themselves morally within their own society by emphasizing the importance that "them," contrary to "others" would give or not to personal sentiments. The ethnographic encounter thus induces frequently both general discourses on what " China " would be, and ways to distinguish oneself from it. Mate choice and its affective dimensions take part in sometimes very established discourses along which giving importance or not to "love" is a central issue. How shall we deal with these idealistic discourses, and how do they translate into the practices of mate-searching singles? From fieldwork interviews of bachelors searching the one, this chapter deals with the complexity of their individual situations, their diversity, and the affective ambivalences their situations lead to.
************************************ 中文摘要 ************************************ "情感矛盾。当代中国城市中的择偶与感情"
笔者在研究中国感情问题的时候面对两种言论:东方主义者倾向于认为在西方之外的社会里，个人感情在择偶中并不重要，但是笔者在田野调查中遇到的中国人则强调情感的重要性。一些访谈对象会从道德层面来界定自己在社会中的位置，并强调是“他们自己”，而不是“别人”，来决定是否赋予爱情一个重要的位置。因此，与访谈对象的交流既有助于获得其关于“中国”的普遍性话语，也有助于了解他们是如何将“自己”的实践跟普遍性话语区分开来。这些话语有时候非常的套路化，关于择偶以及择偶过程中情感层面的考量就是如此，其关键在于某一套话语是否重视“爱情”。那么这些理想化的话语有什么用?尤其是对那些到了结婚年龄却依然单身的年轻人而言，这些理想化的话语又该如何转换到现实生活当中?通过对适婚年龄的单身青年的择偶实践的研究，本章将探讨个人情况的复杂性和多元性，以及这些情况所催生的情感矛盾。

Dossiers by Jean-Baptiste Pettier

L’Homme, 2019

Autrepart, 2018

Qualitative Studies, 2023

Social Analysis, 2022

Comparative Studies in Society and History, 2022

Autrepart, 2018

Critical Asian Studies, 2021

Ethnography, 2020

Environmental History, 2019

L'Homme, 2019

L’Homme, 2019

Études Chinoises, 2017

Anthropology of Consciousness, 2016

Genre, sexualité & société, Jan 1, 2010

Nothing Personal ?! Essays on Affect, Gender and Queerness., 2022

Emotionen. Ein interdisziplinäres Handbuch [Emotions. An interdisciplinary handbook]., 2019

Capdeville-Zeng & Ortis (dir.). Les institutions de l’amour : cour, amour, mariage en Asie et dans l’océan Indien., 2018

Deutsche Gesellschaft für Sozial- und Kulturanthropologie Mitteilungen [Bulletin of the German Anthropological Association], 2020

In this short text, I produce a synthesis of my teaching experience in the context of the coronav... more In this short text, I produce a synthesis of my teaching experience in the context of the coronavirus pandemic during the summer term 2020. By attempting to produce a retrospective account of my experience, my first intention is to draw first lessons out of it for myself and the improvement of my teaching. I share it in the hope that this personal account may be useful to others as well, as many were confronted with similar questions and difficulties.

Contemporary Studies in Society and History, 2022

This online article supplements my article “A question of bank notes, cars, and houses!” Matchmak... more This online article supplements my article “A question of bank notes, cars, and houses!” Matchmaking and the Moral Economy of Love in Urban China” (CSSH 64-2, 2022). In this very different text, I discuss details of my field research and focus on issues of youth intimacy as I encountered them.

Fonds audiovisuel de l'INALCO, France, © 2021Dans cette communication, je propose de partager... more Fonds audiovisuel de l'INALCO, France, © 2021Dans cette communication, je propose de partager des éléments de réflexion basés sur mon expérience du développement de l’anthropologie des mondes chinois en Allemagne, et sur la circulation des travaux et des chercheurs entre les différents espaces institutionnels et linguistiques à l’intérieur de l’Europe. Ces circulations reposent en large part sur des enjeux de carrière professionnelle, de recherche de poste et autres difficultés concrètes auxquelles les jeunes anthropologues sont confrontés à travers toute l’Europe. Elles permettent cependant aussi de développer des questionnements fondamentaux qui concernent au premier plan l’anthropologie, et en particulier l’anthropologie d’un pays- continent tel que l’est la Chine. L’Europe et la Chine représentent en effet des manières différentes d’articuler des identités, des langues et des traditions. Trois éléments inséparables y semblent déterminants: l’État, la culture, la langue. L’ar...

Social Analysis

Where is the political located? Since the early 2000s, the phenomenon of ‘marriage corners’ has m... more Where is the political located? Since the early 2000s, the phenomenon of ‘marriage corners’ has mushroomed in city parks all over China. It consists of public gatherings attended by middle- to upper-middle-class parents attempting to find a partner for their child. The competitiveness of these gatherings and the vocabulary used by the participants when evaluating each other reflect political tensions of Chinese society without articulating them. Exploring this tension, the article argues for attending to the political ramifications of spaces where politics are silenced and denied. Hence, these marriage corners are examined as ‘paradoxical agoras’, that is, as constrained public spaces where politics are neither discussed nor decided, but rather embodied and practiced.

Autrepart, 2018

Emotionen, 2019

What is love? Can it be defined? Is it a universal sentiment everywhere similar, or is it decline... more What is love? Can it be defined? Is it a universal sentiment everywhere similar, or is it declined by various cultures in specific historically shaped forms? Does it have a history? Shall it be specified by complementary adjectives like in the notions of ‘romantic’ , ‘passionate’ or ‘erotic’ love? Is love an instinct and a part of our ‘nature’ , or is it educated and belongs to the domain of culture? While the question of the balance between nature and nurture is a classic one in the study of emotions, the notion of love is specific with regard to the unusually large number of issues that it covers. As observes the psychologist James Averill.

Ethnography, 2020

Caught in the context of a highly competitive development process, within the framework of a poli... more Caught in the context of a highly competitive development process, within the framework of a policy which limited their reproductive capacity to a single child, PRC urban families have, in recent decades, attached growing importance to their child's education, aiming to lead them to professional and personal success. This, however, also had an impact on the capacities of many young adults to marry early. In this context, the phenomenon of “marriage corners” mushroomed in large cities all over China beginning in the mid-2000s. Within China, this new practice generated criticism. These markets are seen as displaying conservative forms of marriage arrangement, the disregarding of romantic love, and forms of intergenerational power organization that may be considered backwards. However, by the criticisms it generates but as well the forms of relationships that it displays, the phenomenon can allow for a better understanding of the transformation of inter-generational relationships a...

Autrepart, 2018

Les institutions de l'amour : cour, amour, mariage

Tout autant qu'à des discours orientalistes affirmant que les sentiments personnels sont ... more Tout autant qu'à des discours orientalistes affirmant que les sentiments personnels sont peu importants dans le choix du conjoint en dehors des sociétés occidentales, les recherches conduites sur la société chinoise contemporaine confrontent le chercheur à des discours chinois très codifiés sur l'importance des sentiments en Chine. Par ceux-ci, les personnes rencontrées se situent moralement et se distinguent en affirmant l'importance qu'« elles », à la différence d'« autres », accorderaient ou non à l'amour. La situation de rencontre avec l'ethnographe contribue ainsi à produire des discours généraux sur « la Chine », mais aussi des manières de s'en distinguer. Le choix du conjoint et les modalités affectives de ce choix font partie de ces discours parfois très balisés, au sein desquels accorder ou non de l'importance à l'« amour » est un enjeu essentiel. Que faire de ces discours idéaux, et comment se traduisent‑ils en situation réelle pour les jeunes gens considérés comme en âge de se marier mais encore célibataires ? À partir d'une recherche conduite auprès de jeunes gens en âge de se marier et à la recherche d'un conjoint, ce chapitre examine la complexité des situations individuelles, leur diversité, et les ambivalences affectives que ces situations produisent. ************************************ ENGLISH ABSTRACT ************************************ "Affective Ambivalences. Mate Choice and Sentiments in Contemporary Urban China" Working on the issue of sentiments in China confronts the researcher to two types of discourses: orientalist ones that tend to deny the importance of personal sentiments outside of the Western world, but also internal Chinese discourses concerning sentiments in China. With these second ones, some of the informants situate themselves morally within their own society by emphasizing the importance that "them," contrary to "others" would give or not to personal sentiments. The ethnographic encounter thus induces frequently both general discourses on what " China " would be, and ways to distinguish oneself from it. Mate choice and its affective dimensions take part in sometimes very established discourses along which giving importance or not to "love" is a central issue. How shall we deal with these idealistic discourses, and how do they translate into the practices of mate-searching singles? From fieldwork interviews of bachelors searching the one, this chapter deals with the complexity of their individual situations, their diversity, and the affective ambivalences their situations lead to. ************************************ 中文摘要 ************************************ "情感矛盾。当代中国城市中的择偶与感情" 笔者在研究中国感情问题的时候面对两种言论:东方主义者倾向于认为在西方之外的社会里，个人感情在择偶中并不重要，但是笔者在田野调查中遇到的中国人则强调情感的重要性。一些访谈对象会从道德层面来界定自己在社会中的位置，并强调是“他们自己”，而不是“别人”，来决定是否赋予爱情一个重要的位置。因此，与访谈对象的交流既有助于获得其关于“中国”的普遍性话语，也有助于了解他们是如何将“自己”的实践跟普遍性话语区分开来。这些话语有时候非常的套路化，关于择偶以及择偶过程中情感层面的考量就是如此，其关键在于某一套话语是否重视“爱情”。那么这些理想化的话语有什么用?尤其是对那些到了结婚年龄却依然单身的年轻人而言，这些理想化的话语又该如何转换到现实生活当中?通过对适婚年龄的单身青年的择偶实践的研究，本章将探讨个人情况的复杂性和多元性，以及这些情况所催生的情感矛盾。

Comparative Studies in Society and History, 2022

Mobilizations in defence of ‘companion animals’ have become major sites of contestation in Chines... more Mobilizations in defence of ‘companion animals’ have become major sites of contestation in Chinese society in recent years. They often reject the existing ambiguity between the use of these animals as pets and as meat, demanding unambiguous respect for and protection of dogs. However, in a society where inequalities are as significant as in China, where the level of poverty, sickness, and environmental and industrial tragedies appears overwhelming, one may ask how pets’ destinies have become such a symbolic focus and source of occasional fury – for both Chinese and foreign audiences. Taking this question seriously, this article aims to examine such mobilizations in China – demanding the protection of dogs – as a starting point to theoretically unwrap the more general problem of how the perception of certain beings as ‘weak’ and as deserving the protection of society is socially constructed, and what the related choices imply. I argue that to better understand these mobilizations to ...

Le vingtième siècle a été marqué en Chine par les débats sur la place de la famille dans le choix... more Le vingtième siècle a été marqué en Chine par les débats sur la place de la famille dans le choix du conjoint. En s’émancipant des générations antérieures, les nouvelles pourraient, pensait-on, gagner en caractère et en indépendance d’esprit, s’affirmer comme de véritables individus, et permettre à leur pays de progresser vers la modernité. Dès les années 1930, la République soviétique chinoise du Jiangxi interdisait l’intermédiation matrimoniale. Pourtant, la littérature scientifique montre que ces pratiques n’ont jamais cessé. Et elles connaissent depuis les années 1980 un regain visible de vigueur, agences matrimoniales, réunions parentales et émissions de rencontre connaissant un succès évident. Au point d’être aujourd’hui présentées sous le jour fataliste d’une institution inévitable dans la société chinoise. Cet article revient sur le rôle central que joue dans ce discours la figure de la marieuse et propose une analyse critique de la manière dont les pratiques de présentation du conjoint actuelles sont symboliquement rattachées à la figure des marieuses de la Chine ancienne. ************************************ ENGLISH ABSTRACT ************************************ “The Fate of Meiren: Uses of the History of Traditional Matchmakers as a Justification for Marriage Brokering in Contemporary China.” The twentieth century was marked in China by debates on the place of the family in the choice of a spouse. By emancipating themselves from previous generations, the new generations could—so it was thought—gain in character and independence of spirit, assert themselves as true individuals, and allow their country to progress towards modernity. Beginning in the 1930s, the Chinese Soviet Republic (the Jiangxi Soviet) forbade marriage brokering. However, scholarly literature shows that these practices have never ceased. And, since the 1980s, they have experienced a visible revival of vigor, with the obvious success of matrimonial agencies, parental meetings, and match- making programs, to the point where they are presented today as the ultimate functioning of an inevitable institution of Chinese society. This article revisits the central role played by the figure of the marriage broker in this discourse and proposes a critical analysis of the way in which the present practices of the introduction of the marriage partner are symbolically related to the figure of the matchmaker of ancient China. ************************************ 中文摘要 ************************************ 裴剑白(Jean-Baptiste Pettier) : “媒人的命運:用中國古代媒婆的歷史來支持當代婚姻中介的合理性”。關於家庭在配偶選擇中的地位的爭論，在20世紀的中國是一個引人注目的話題。我們曾經以為，新一代的中國人脫離了前輩人的束縛，就能够表現個人性格和獨立的精神，作為真正的個體而被認可，並且推動國家往現代性發展。從二十世紀30年代起，江西省的蘇聯式的中國共和國禁止婚姻中介。然而，科學研究文獻卻表明該活動其實從未中斷，並且在80年代有過一次令人矚目的發展熱潮，婚姻介紹所、父母相親和電視相親節目，都曾經大獲成功。以至於今天的中國社會相當宿命地不得不使用婚姻中介。本文將回溯媒婆形象在這一論題中所扮演的核心角色，並且分析當今結婚對象介紹這個活動，事實上乃象徵性地與中國古代的媒婆角色緊密相連。

L'Homme, 2019

Les marieuses sont en Chine une institution sociale ancienne. Elles furent longtemps imposees par... more Les marieuses sont en Chine une institution sociale ancienne. Elles furent longtemps imposees par l’Etat imperial afin de controler les mœurs et les familles. Considerees comme un frein a l’emancipation des nouvelles generations au debut du xxe siecle, et donc comme l’une des causes du retard chinois, elles furent par la suite interdites par le regime communiste. La pratique de l’intermediation matrimoniale n’a cependant jamais vraiment cesse, et les reformes economiques conduites depuis les annees 1980 semblent avoir accelere leur reinvention sous de nouvelles formes. Longtemps indispensables a tout mariage « honnete », les marieuses, aujourd’hui, sont au contraire plutot associees a un manque d’autonomie personnelle chez les candidats au mariage. L’evolution de leur position sociale renouvelle les questionnements theoriques classiques sur la place de l’individu ou des sentiments personnels dans le choix du conjoint en Chine. Cet article propose de le montrer a partir de l’ethnogra...

Cette etude ethnographique, conduite a Pekin et a Chengdu entre 2006 et 2010, examine les transfo... more Cette etude ethnographique, conduite a Pekin et a Chengdu entre 2006 et 2010, examine les transformations du marche matrimonial en Chine urbaine a travers le prisme d’une institution sociale : le xiāngqīn, une forme d’intermediation traditionnelle, aujourd’hui reinventee. A travers une serie de lieux (des agences matrimoniales, des reunions parentales et de celibataires), elle reexamine certains enjeux cles du vingtieme siecle (l’opposition aux mariages arranges, la place politique de l’amour, le role social des marieuses, l��importance des relations sociales (guānxi), le role de pensees traditionnelles comme le "confucianisme", etc. ) Le phenomene est saisit dans son actualite et sa transversalite, rendant compte de ses dimensions sociales, economiques, historiques, et conferant une attention particuliere a ce que je nomme "l’echelle affective" de la recherche. J’y mets au jour des "politiques sentimentales", qui aident a penser les discriminations so...

Critical Asian Studies

ABSTRACT To be considered worthy of society’s protection is not the objective consequence of an i... more ABSTRACT To be considered worthy of society’s protection is not the objective consequence of an inherent quality but the result of a social process. This article examines this observation through the case of canine welfare in China. Popular defense of dogs against brutalization and consumption, as well as state regulations, have become common in China in recent years, generating conflicts over the value attributed to dogs. To understand the circumstances behind and broader implications of activists’ support for protecting dogs, this article identifies elements that are determinant: framing; prioritization; the relationship between protectors and protected; and the socio-political background of these campaigns.

Genre, sexualité et société

Anthropology of Consciousness, 2016

From an outsider's perspective, today's Popular China might appear as a self-conf... more From an outsider's perspective, today's Popular China might appear as a self-confident and triumphant country. However, a large-scale examination of the country's recent moral controversies reveals a very different picture, one that has much to do with the widespread local public perception of an ongoing “moral crisis” (Kleinman et al., 2011), whose examination requires careful attention placed on the ethical and affective aspects of the everyday lives of today's Chinese people. In this article, I propose to examine the anguish that Chinese bachelor youths and their concerned parents undergo and express, as they are confronted with the difficult process of finding a suitable mate for marriage. I examine the fears their celibacy generates, the mutual distrust that participants taking part in bachelors’ parents gatherings demonstrate, and the disputes these encounters engage. I analyze the moral world of today's urban China from the perspective of the very feelings and affects that pervade it. Highlighting the ways in which my interlocutors shared their emotions with me along the course of my fieldwork, carried out in the cities of Beijing and Chengdu, I will insist on the importance of these affects within an anthropological approach. The moral sensitivities contained in the maintenance of the economic and social situations of one's family reveal themselves as an exceptional resource for knowledge. By examining the political economy of sentiments within which parents and their children find themselves entrapped, I argue that we can gain a deeper understanding of the concrete consequences of today's societal transformations.