Contributing a new dimension to the existing literature on China’s economic development which focuses on the how questions – i.e., questions about the process and conditions – this dissertation research addresses a fundamental why question. Specifically, it asks: why, after more than two millennia of subsistence-oriented economy, did Chinese leaders and/or common people become interested in and reorient toward sustained economic growth? It examines and compares three episodes of China’s economic modernization in the course of the past century, testing the hypothesis that this reorientation has been motivated by nationalism, specifically the desire to improve the international standing (power and prestige) of China, using as the chief means to this end the country’s enormous economic resources. The three chosen episodes for historical comparison are: the Nanjing Decade (1928-1937) under the rule of the Nationalist government, the years of early economic reform led by Deng Xiaoping (1978-1997), and the recent years, broadly identified as Chinese globalization, under Xi Jinping (2013- present). Drawing upon historical archives, biographies, contemporary official documents, media reports, economic statistics, and survey data, this dissertation empirically examines the major changes of China’s political economy in each of the three periods. In particular, it looks into the development and competition of different nationalist aspirations (i.e., nationalism prioritizing the economy versus other spheres such as ideology, culture, or the military) and analyzes the mechanisms through which the type of nationalism that came to be adopted by Chinese leaders and eventually the people made the economy its priority. On the basis of the comparative-historical analysis of the three core periods in Chinese political economy, the dissertation overall argues the following: First, the identification of the economic sphere as the basis of national greatness in China (in imitation of leading Western nations and, in particular, Japan) made economic success a way to social status and approbation. This led to nationalism, specifically nationalism prioritizing the economy, among those with economic opportunities, as people came to connect their success and increased dignity with China’s international standing, seeing themselves as directly contributing to it and becoming personally invested in and committed to the nation’s prosperity. Second, the sectors of the population to whom economic opportunities were open during the three periods of Chinese modernization differed. Thus, nationalism prioritizing the economy was only shared by a small number of individuals within the intellectual and business elite in Republican China, spreading to a much wider circle in the elite and those who got rich first under Deng’s “Reform and Opening-up” policy, and, in the recent decades eventually percolating to the population at large. Third, competition for international prestige is endless – when it is pursued through the economy, it creates commitment to sustained growth. China’s rising international status based on its rapid economic growth since 1978, signaled by its astonishing display at the Beijing Olympics in 2008 and its resilience during the 2008/09 international financial crisis, converted many more Chinese into nationalists, which, in turn, reinforced their economic motivation, creating a snowball effect. Fourth, similarly to the earlier leaders in the economic competition (e.g., Britain, the US, and Japan), China’s growing economic power changed its attitude to free trade and globalization. Its economic policies have steadily turned away from protectionism that so many experts believe to be inseparable from the political ideology of the authoritarian Chinese state. China’s recent championship of globalization shows that economic globalization is ideologically-independent – i.e., it is simply in the interest of the economically most powerful nations, and thus, today, in China’s national interest.

The main frame of this research is ¡§Economic Modernization¡¨ categorized modernization theory, and the objective of this research is TVEs to analyze the characteristics of Mainland China¡¦s economic modernization. TVEs is a kind of special enterprise style of China. TVEs integrate rural resources, collective ownership, and modern business management into the main power of the development of rural economy. Moreover, also the particularities of TVEs¡¦ system are the emphasis of this research. The members of TVEs which are villagers, local government officers, managers, and party cadres form a kind of special mutual-dependence relationship between rural communities, CPC (Communist Party of China), and governments. Finally, the extending question is economic modernization transiting to political modernization, also China with the different development from western nations.

La thèse reconstruit d’une manière critique les actions organisatrices et les luttes que le Front Démocratique Paysan [Frente Democrático Campesino, FDC] a effectuées depuis 1985 dans l'Ouest du Chihuahua, au Mexique, pour résister à la nouvelle phase agro-exportatrice néolibérale de subordination de l'agriculture au capitalisme, comme une partie du processus de globalisation économique, dans le contexte de la transition à la démocratie au Mexique et des effets désorganisateurs de la modernisation. Elle analyse les différentes luttes du FDC contre l'ouverture commerciale, pour le prix de ses produits, contre la corruption et pour la démocratie, ainsi que la pédagogie de l'action et de construction de citoyenneté qu'il a menée à bien et ses relations internes et externes. Sa conclusion est que les luttes et les actions d'organisation économique et sociale du Front Démocratique Paysan, même convergeant et s’articulant avec celles d'autres organisations paysannes, n'ont pas réussi à construire une corrélation de forces qu'il leur permette de changer ou freiner le modèle agro-alimentaire global d’exploitation et d’exclusion imposé par le gouvernement fédéral au Mexique depuis 1983, bien qu'elles aient influé favorablement les processus de démocratisation et de construction de contre-pouvoirs au niveau local, dans la construction de citoyenneté et densification du social au niveau de leur région d'influence. / This thesis reconstructs the organizational actions and the fight that the Frente Democratico Campesino, Peasant’s Democratic Front the FDC have done since 1995 in the Western Region of Chihuahua, Mexico to resist the new neo-liberal agro-export phase of subordinating agriculture to capitalism as part of the globalization process in the context of the transition towards democracy in Mexico and the disorganizing effects of modernization. Analyzes the different fights of the FDC because of the different components of the productive process against commercial openings, the price of its products, fight against corruption and because of the democracy. Also, the teaching of the action and construction of the community that has been done, as well as its internal and external relationships. It concludes that the Fights, the economic and social organizational actions of the Peasant’s Democratic Front, be connected and unify with the ones of o! ther farming organizations have not achieved a connection of forces that allows them to change or stop the agri-food model imposed by the federal government in Mexico since 1983 even though they have influenced favorably in the democratization processes and the construction of counter powers at a local level, in the construction of community and social densification in its region of influence.

The essay examines whether Ebba Mörner's ownership of the estate Thorönsborg reflected an effort to modernize the forms of operation and organization, or whether her management was an expression of social downgrade of Swedish nobility. The topic of this essay is modernization and gender in context of an early, 20th century manorial economy. The investigation highlights the role and entrepreneurship of Ebba Mörner in contrast to the female expecations of her time.  The essay also aims to investigate whether Ebba Mörner was representative of the expectations of the time, or whether she broke the norms for women's and men's work - especially when it comes to entrepreneurship. Using mainly a micro-historical perspective the study draws on the unpublished estate records of Thorönsborg. Theoretically, the essay is based on Yvonne Hirdman's gender theory; focusing on the concepts of gender systems and gender contracts. The essay’s purpose is mainly to contribute to the relatively sparse research on womens’ property ownership and entrepreneurship during the early Swedish 20th century.  Ebba Mörner sometimes norm-breaking character, her diligence and financial mind shines through in the investigation. From the moment when she made Thorönsborg her home until her passing, Mörner successfully devotes herself to progressively investing and managing the estate. Yet Mörner also devotes herself to maintaining the gender contract of the time. Mörner was both behind and ahead of her time. Both living a part of her life during the noble glory days of the 19th century with conservative ideals, and also living in a century of budding democracy and women's liberation. / I uppsatsen undersöks huruvida Ebba Mörners tid som ägarinna av godset Thorönsborg speglade en strävan att modernisera gårdens driftsformer och organisation, eller om hennes förvaltarskap snarare var ett uttryck för social deklassering av svensk adel. I uppsatsen har även undersökts huruvida Ebba Mörner var representativ för tidens förväntningar, eller om hon bröt mot rådande normer för kvinnors respektive mäns sysselsättning – särskilt när det gäller företagande. Undersökningen har huvudsakligen genomförts genom mikrohistoriska studier av otryckt källmaterial från Thorönsborgs gårdsarkiv.  Den teoretiska utgångspunkten är hämtad från Yvonne Hirdmans genusteori med fokus på begreppen genussystem och genuskontrakt. Syftet är att bidra till den relativt sparsamma forskningen om kvinnligt godsägande och företagande under tidigt svenskt 1900-tal. I undersökningen framträder Ebba Mörners stundtals normbrytande karaktär, hennes driftighet och ekonomiska sinne. Från tiden hon gör Thorönsborg till sin huvudbostad till sin död, ägnar Mörner sig framgångsrikt åt att progressivt investera och förvalta sitt gods. Mörner ägnar sig också till att upprätthålla tidens genuskontrakt, bland annat genom sitt sociala engagemang. Mörner var samtidigt före och efter sin tid. Med ena benet i 1800-talets adliga storhetstid med konservativa ideal, och andra benet i ett århundrande med knoppande demokrati och kvinnlig frigörelse.

Cette thèse analyse comment la Dictature de Primo de Rivera (1923-1930) a créé un projet de formation professionnel technique-industriel qui a servi à moderniser l’économie du pays, au service d’une conception corporativede l’Etat. Pour la première fois, au travers les Décrets Royaux du Statut d’Enseignement Industriel de 1924 et du Statut de Formation Professionnelle de 1928, le nouveau gouvernement réalisé centralisait tous les canaux de formation industriel du jeune ouvrier et de la classe moyenne au moyen de la création des écoles élémentaires et supérieures du travail. L'État prétendait atteindre deux buts : la modernisation économique du pays et le maintien de la structure sociopolitique traditionnelle au moyen d’un discours et d’une organisation corporative. Au mème temps, cette thèse analyse comme avec l’arrivée de la Seconde République (1931-1936), le projet de Primo de Rivera de l’instruction technique de l’ouvrier n’a pas se développer comme le Statut de Formation Professionnelle l’avait prévu en 1928, car principalement son objectif était de favoriser l’alphabétisation du pays à l’intérieur des valeurs démocratiques et libérales / The present thesis analyzes how the Dictatorship of Primo of Rivera (1923-1930) created a project of industrial vocational training who was serving to modernize the economy of the country, to the service of a corporate conception of the State. For the first time, across the Statute of Industrial Education of 1924 and of the Statute of Vocational Training of 1928 the new government was centralizing all the channels of industrial formation of the working young person and of the middle class across the creation of the elementary and high industrial schools. The aims were: economic modernization of the country and to support the socio-political traditional structure by means of a speech and a corporate organization.At the same time, this thesis analyzes like with the arrival of the Second Republic (1931-1936), the corporate and economic sense of the industrial vocational training of the worker was relegated to a background. As what mainly was claimed it was to favor the literacy of the country inside the democratic and liberal values, the project of the dictatorship of the technical instruction of the worker could not be developped as the Statute of Vocational training had raised in 1928 / La presente tesis analiza como la Dictadura de Primo de Rivera (1923-1930) creó un proyecto de formación profesional técnico-industrial que servía para modernizar la economía del país, al servicio de una concepción corporativa del Estado. Por primera vez, a través del Estatuto de Enseñanza Industrial de 1924 y del Estatuto de Formación Profesional de 1928 el nuevo gobierno centralizaba todos los canales de formación industrial del joven obrero y de la clase media a través de la creación de las escuelas elementales y superiores de trabajo. El objetivo era alcanzar dos fines: la modernización económica del país y mantener la estructura socio-política tradicional mediante un discurso y una organización corporativa. Al mismo tiempo, estudia como con la llegada de la Segunda República (1931-1936), el proyecto corporativo de la instrucción técnica del obrero no se pudo desarrollar tal como lo había planteado el Estatuto de Formación Profesional en 1928, ya que lo que mayormente se pretendía era favorecer la alfabetización del país dentro de los valores democráticos y liberales.