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Distributed for University of British Columbia Press

Intoxicating Manchuria

Alcohol, Opium, and Culture in China’s Northeast

Intoxicating Manchuria reveals how the powerful alcohol and opium industries in Northeast China were altered by warlord rule, Japanese occupation, political conflict, and a vigorous anti-intoxicant movement. Through the lens of the Chinese media’s depictions of alcohol and opium, Norman Smith examines how intoxicants and addiction were understood in this society, the role the Japanese occupation of Manchuria played in the portrayal of intoxicants, and the efforts made to reduce opium and alcohol consumption. This is the first English-language book-length study to focus on alcohol use in modern China and the first dealing with intoxicant restrictions in the region.


312 pages | © 2012

Contemporary Chinese Studies

History: History of Ideas


Table of Contents

Introduction

1 Alcohol and Opium in China

2 Manchurian Context

3 Evaluating Alcohol

4 Selling Alcohol, Selling Modernity

5 Writing Intoxicant Consumption

6 The Hostess Scare

7 Reasoning Addiction, Taking the Cures

8 The Opium Monopoly’s “Interesting Discussion”

Conclusion

Glossary

Notes

Bibliography

Index

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