This monograph is a carefully researched investigation of the first thirty years of the life of Beijing University (Beida) that points to provocative and novel paths for a renewed research effort into the May Fourth era, its background, and its legacy. In contrast to much of the vast literature on May Fourth, The Power of Position embraces a different approach to institutional and intellectual history: Timothy Weston sets out to write about the most important educational institution in modern China, not simply in terms of a history of ideas but as one of intellectuals, their practices, and their attitudes. He is largely successful in achieving his objectives.
Weston musters a vast and diverse array of sources to provide a picture of Beijing University that is never dry, and often lively and rich. The focus on one institution allows him to write a history that is “localized” (he never claims to...
