Still ‘breadwinners’ and ‘providers’: Singaporean husbands,money and masculinity in transnational marriages

As international marriages continue to be on the rise around the world, and in East and Southeast Asia in particular, there is an increasing need for more focused studies on the phenomenon. While the extant literature has paid attention to the complex dynamics of marital intimacies through a ‘gender-sensitive’ lens, the experiences of men are still largely under-examined. This article considers the gendered and classed subjectivities of Singaporean husbands who have married Vietnamese wives and focuses on ‘money’ as a key vehicle through which the men are able to construct masculinities in the spaces of transnational marriage and family. We argue that these non-migrant men engage with transnational processes and practices strategically in order to reclaim respectable and honourable masculine status. In doing so, they dislodge themselves from the idiom of ‘failed masculinity’ commonly ascribed to men who seek foreign spouses, but at the same time reproduce dominant models of masculinity predicated on ‘breadwinning’ and ‘providing’. This article draws on the narratives of 20 Singaporean Chinese men from a range of social backgrounds to demonstrate the endurance of money and economic potency in the performance of masculinities.     

Continuity and transformation: the institutions of the Beijing government, 1912–1928

The period of the Beijing government of Republican China (1912–1928) occurred after the 1911 Revolution that toppled the imperial system and before the rule of the Nanjing Nationalist government. For modern China, it was an era of frequent trial and error in implementing political systems, as well as a significant phase of institutional transition following the New Policy reforms of the late Qing. Many twists and turns during this period of historical evolution stemmed from problems of the late Qing political reform. The three major issues occurring during the 1912–1928 era, namely the legitimacy of the government, the relationship between its legislative and executive branches, and the relationship between the central government and the provinces, were all dominated by the profound influence of traditional Chinese political and cultural frameworks. All of this made the 1912–1928 era more complicated than the late Qing period, increased the difference between one stage of institutional change and another, and accelerated the change in political systems while also broadening the choices available. Therefore, we should not only focus on the complex contention among all parties, but also acquire a deeper understanding of the limits imposed upon institutional renovation by tradition and circumstances through examination of the institutional adaptations behind the chaotic partisan politics.     

蔡襄《行书自书诗》卷后“匡山凷翁”题跋小考

故宫博物院藏《行书自书诗》卷是蔡襄行书代表作,卷后有历代题跋多则,其中款署为匡山凷翁的一跋,前人向对作者未有详论。本文通过此卷前后题跋以及相关文献记载,考证出此跋作者为明初人吴勤,因受当时的收藏者管讷的邀请而书此题跋。通过对匡山凷翁身份的揭示,可以更清晰地了解此卷在明初的流传轨迹,对此间书画鉴藏史的研究或有裨益。     

种瓜得豆：清季外官改制的舆论及方案选择

清季官制改革启动前,程序和步骤均有不同方案,选择结果对改革进程不无影响。当朝执政未能统筹全局,却照搬外国经验,从而内外官改制难以协调,督抚的双重身份又成为官制改革的症结及矛盾焦点。因改制权力频受削弱的督抚,设法图存扩张,先是多方表达自己的不满和诉求,继而利用立宪派和民众的请愿,公开向清廷施加压力。直至辛亥前夕,外官改制的最终方案仍未确定,由此引发的权与利的争斗,加速了清王朝垮台。所遗留的省级行政权力及其长官身份地位问题,成为民初割据纷争要因,且依然困扰着后来行政体制的规划者与建设者。     

民国时期日本称谓中国国号之演化及用心考论

日本政府延至1913年10月才正式承认中华民国,但又规定在内外公文中要以“支那”或“支那国”称呼中国。在30年代末和40年代初,又先后将其改为“中华民国”和“中国”。每一次改称背后都包含着分裂或独占中国的野心,也是民国时期日本对华政策和中日交涉中的一个症结。     

西部民族特性与民族政策教育

本在剖析西部民族特性的基础上,重点计论了西部民族政策教育的对象和应突出解决的重点问题;同时强调,教育不是万能的,要实现我们预期的目标,各级有关部门还必须正确处理民族关系中的人民内部矛盾,最大限度地化解消极因素。这也是考察各级干部执政能力和执政水平的一项重要内容。     

清季督抚文案与文案处考略

有清一代,行省最高权力中心督抚衙门的行政运作和结构演变,经历了从私人性质的非正式组织,至正规行政体制建构的重要转变,其过程至少应分为幕府、文案处和幕职三个阶段。其间文案委员和文案处的出现与发展,经历了道咸同光四朝,显示了清季督抚权力上升,中央控制力下移的趋势。这一变化过程表明,清末政制的转型,决非单纯移植西方制度,而是社会变动与实际需求内在潜因促动下,逐渐突破旧有规制束缚,部分借鉴原有体制中的其他形式,以表达新的政治诉求,不断导致职能转变与内容更新的结果。     

老舍民族心理刍说

具有重大历史意义的辛亥革命其负面作用之一,是将满族与清朝廷视为一体,从而否定了满民族。满族社会变迁对于作为文化人与文学家的老舍其民族心理的形成及走势,构成了既潜在又具有某些决定性的制约,它或明确或隐约地作用于作家的文学活动。他一生关注和书写着北京及各地满族同胞的命运,描写虽未标明民族身份却又明显带有满人特征的形象,来为自己的民族洗辱辩诬。老舍既非政治家亦非哲人,他很难跳出本民族正在遭难的小圈子去“放眼大局”,却选择了与本民族民众同呼吸、共进退的思维和行为方式。让老舍民族心理备受折磨的,莫过于本民族被看成是个缺乏爱国精神、不乏卖国记录的民族,他用作品中的同胞形象更用自己爱国者的一贯行动,来显示本民族的爱国传统。满族文化人反感于民国时期的道德颠覆,将“洁身自好”确立为处世准则,老舍亦如此。为了让社会上重新认识满族,他在晚年创作中正大光明地状写满族。其笔下人物所述“我爱我们的国呀,可是谁爱我呢?”正是满族人带着自我临终关怀性质的“天问”。