earticle

영어

In 21th century, China's rural areas were impacted by urbanization and industrialization. A general consent is made by many Chinese scholars that China is facing the “end of villages”. On the basis of the scholars' concern about the public reconstruction of the rural areas in the southeast of China, through a long-term field work in village A, a less developed country in the northeast of China, this paper puts more attention to the rural villages in the northeast of China with less clan tradition which are neglected by scholars. This paper analyzes the relationship between rural public ceremony and publicness reconstruction with two components of public beliefs and public rules, on the basis of Victor Turner's “Social Drama Theory” on public ceremony. Public beliefs and public rules are reflected in the A village's well-preserved public ritual of “praying for rain”. The ceremony of praying for rain is a traditional way for Chinese people to ask for rain from Gods when drought is severely happening. And the public beliefs which are based on the folklore religion of A village, are especially embodied in village temple belief, folk Buddhism and magic belief. Public rules are mainly embodied in the process of ritual, which is divided into separation stage, liminal stage and reintegration stage. And there are special behavior of villagers for each stage. During separation stage, people make Gods happy with some ways, and make themselves suffered to plead. and sacrifice to Gods. During liminal stage, people think that Gods heared of their prays and will reward to them. During reintegration stage, it is a kind of spiritual rebirth for the villagers who take part in the ceremony of rain offering. Public beliefs and public rules are complementary relations. Public beliefs lay the ideological foundation for the implementation of public rules, and public rules deepen people's public beliefs. Thus, the publicness of the A village was strengthened through the ceremony of “praying for rain”. And these two factors also play an essential role in strengthening villagers' interaction, rallying identity, shaping public space and rebuilding publicity. Finally, another result is emphasized that the public ceremony has a historical continuity of form and function while facing background of reflecting on Chinese “rural hollowing” problem’s singularity based on the ontological basis of historical continuity, which emphasize unity of all things in the world. Compared with urban publicness, public beliefs and public rules are significant ,both of theoretically and practically, significance for the reconstruction of rural publicness.