The Making of Hong Kong Society

Studies the formation into classes of the British merchants, Chinese merchants and Chinese labourers of Hong Kong between 1841 and 1922, a period during which Hong Kong developed from a "barren rock" into a complex society.

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In this book, W.K.Chan studies the formation into classes of the British merchants, the Chinese merchants and the Chinese labourers of Hong Kong between 1841 and 1922. During this period Hong Kong developed from a "barren rock" into a complex society. Making use of historical archives, the author examines how British merchants became the first dominant class, sharing identical economic interests, superior political power and a cultural identity. Their exclusivity led the Chinese to seek social status and political power elsewhere: Dr Chan investigates how, through the establishment of voluntary religious and charitable organizations, Chinese merchants emerged as leaders of the Chinese community and powerful rivals of the British. Finally, he charts the development of the Chinese labourers into a recognizable social class with interests opposed to those of the merchant classes: this was a conflict finally brought into the open by the great seamen's strike of 1922. While recognizing the influence of China and Britain on events in Hong Kong, Dr Chan emphasizes the importance of treating Hong Kong as a society with its own integrity.
By intermeshing historical and sociological analysis he seeks not only to describe what happened but to analyze the social and economic relationship of the various historical actors involved in a vital episode of Hong Kong's economic history.