-"an account of the collision of two forces: aspiration and authoritarianism"

Having explored Egypt in The Buried, we now turn our focus to China, which has an extremely different economic and political institutional environment. We do this again by focusing on lived experiences.

Winner of the National Book Award and part of a Pulitzer Prize-winning team for investigative reporting, Evans Osnos spent eight years living in Beijing, witnessing the changes occurring from 2005-2013. The selected excerpts from Age of Ambition – Chasing Fortune, Truth, and Faith inthe New China capture the ways in which state institutions in China have fueled economic growth while also imposing limits on broader opportunity.

Main Themes:

1. Paradox of Chinese Reforms: Despite official suspicion of individualism, China enacted core free-market ideas.
2. Embracing Market Principles (Under New Labels): Early reformers like Wu Jinglian, despite a background in orthodox socialism, became leading experts on the free market, necessitated by economic realities.
3. Mass Migration and Labor: China's growth relied on "abundant cheap labor and a surge of investment in factories and infrastructure." The relaxation of the hukou system in 1985 permitted temporary rural-to-urban migration, fueling this labor supply.
4. Rise of Individualism and Self-Reliance: Companies actively promoted individualistic messages. Even in rural areas, teachers prepared students for a world requiring "self-reliance, self-promotion, and the self-made individual."
5. The "Got Rich First Crowd" (xianfu qunti): The emergence of a wealthy class led to new societal dynamics.
6. New Class Distinctions and Identities: The return of class led to a society actively defining new archetypes
7. Changing Aspirations: The shift from traditional village views to independence and personal choice.
8. Co-opting the Wealthy: The Party saw the return of class as an "opportunity" to buttress itself against democracy.
9. Ideological Contortions: To reconcile its Marxist-Leninist roots with the new reality, Jiang Zemin in 2002 avoided "middle class" but declared dedication to the "New Middle-Income Stratum."
10. Shift from "Revolutionary Party" to "Party in Power": A constitutional change in 2002 saw the Party stop calling itself a "revolutionary party," becoming "ardent defenders of the status quo."
11. Technocratic Rule and Lack of Personality: Leaders embodied the belief that "development is the only hard truth." The Party deliberately suppressed cults of personality, presenting a "tableau of conformity".
12. Party vs. Society: Despite the Party becoming "more homogenous, buttoned-down, and conservative," Chinese society was simultaneously "becoming more diverse, raucous, and freewheeling."
13. The "Grand Bargain": The Wenzhou train crash symbolized the fragility of "the grand bargain of modern Chinese politics in the era after socialism: allow the Party to reign unchallenged as long as it was reasonably competent." The crash "violated the deal".
14. Corruption: The crash's underlying problems were tied to "graft, fraud, embezzlement, and patronage." The signal system that failed was rushed through development and had "grave flaws and major hidden dangers."
15. Broader Infrastructure Failures: The crash was not isolated; parts of "the new China had been built too fast for their own good," leading to other collapses.
16. Pervasiveness of Corruption: Corruption functions through "unwritten rules" and personal connections.
17. "Protective Umbrellas" and "Mafiazation": Officials and businessmen formed networks, creating "protective umbrellas," described by scholars as the "Mafiazation" of the state.
18. Impact on Public Services: Corruption directly impacted public safety and services.
19. Economic Impact Debated: Optimists argue corruption is a transition phase enabling growth, citing infrastructure achievements. Others are less optimistic, pointing to low prosecution rates (3-6% of wrongdoers) and comparing China's corruption to "anarchy".