Institute of History and Philology, Academia Sinica

Abstract

State-level polities of the Chou Dynasty period, both numerous and diverse, were integrated within the network of the "feudal system" (feng-chien chih-tu) according to standards of relative rank-order. Funda mental to the nature of the state formations of this period was the "city-state" (ch'eng-pang), and analysis reveals that the "city-state" formation, along with the process of Chou "feudalism" (feng-chien), were essentially two, co-dependent aspects of one and the same socio-political phenomenon.  The author thus refers to this phenomenon as the "feudal city-state" (feng-chien ch'eng-pang).
The first of this essay's five sections is devoted to a review of previous discussions of the ancient chinese socio-political order, paying special attention to those advancing te concept of the "city-state" and to crucial differences in the definition of this concept.    In the following section an examination of evidence in the Tso Chuan pertaining to the small, surving "city-states" of the Spring and Autumn period, leads to the hypothesis that such "classical city-states" (tien-hsing ch'eng-pang) were, in fact, characteristic of earlier Western Chou and Shang Dynasty period state formations.  Geographical analysis is employed to identify the basic, physical components of the "classical city-state", such as city walls and territorial borders, and the three, major divisions of the realm--kuo, chiao and yeh.  The third section demonstrates that the "city-state" formation endured well into the era of the "feudal order" established by the Chou. The "states" (pang-kuo) and "capitals" (tu-pi) within both the Royal Domain (ching chi) of the Chou King, and the territories of the "feudal states" (lie kuo feng-yu), were comprised of so many individual "city-
states". The nature of interrelationships between the many "states" (pang-kuo) and the Chou king, and among themselves, were prescribed and regulated by "feudally conferred" (feng-chien) fu and chueh ranks. The power structure and social organization characterizing the "city-state" is the focus of the fourth section.  Emphasis is given to discussion of the nature and role of the kuo jen within the overall "city-state" population.  In the final section, brief note is made of the Shang Dynasty period "city-state" formation as an antecedent to its later Chou counterpart.
My intent has been to demonstrate that the concept of the "feudal city-state" may offer a novel alternative to the Marxist "Slave Society" (nu-li chih) and "Feudal Society" (feng-chien chih), as an analytical vehicle for comprehending the nature of the ancient Chinese socio-political order.