Paper short abstract:

Analysis of Chinese local water politics under a hydraulic society perspective with the Chongqing Garden Expo Park as case study.

Paper long abstract:

K. A. Wittfogel in his Oriental Despotism emphasizes the creative ability of the Hydraulic Societies that lasting through the centuries, could evolve into diverse political forms according to the different historical stages. Moreover, Wittfogel is skeptical about the effects of Western influence on the 'Oriental Societies', arguing that private property and enterprise are not always clear signs of a 'modern middle class' based on Western values. Starting from this assumption, this paper takes the Chongqing Garden Expo Park as case study to analyze Chinese local politics and their significance on the social milieu: the particular waterscape of Chongqing represents in fact a means by which local government tries to implement its politics of physical and mental subjugation of the population, through subtle processes like the regulation of the leisure time, and the redistribution of land according to a gentrification pattern. Some evident measures of population containment such as the corvée, have been replaced by the power of shaping people's desires, inspiring ideals, and creating knowledge. This paper thus addresses the significance of local politics for understanding people's attitudes over water and possible phenomena of resilience, and aims to clarify to what extent the fulfillment of the Hydraulic Society model is possible on the actual substratum of Chongqing city.

Keywords: hydraulic society, water politics, tertiary sector, China, Chongqing Garden Expo Park