2.To understand the most important characteristics of a society, one must study its major cities.
To understand the most important characteristics of a society, one must not only study its major cities, but also study its small villages and rural areas.
First, the major cities could provide much information for people to understand the society because usually the major cities serve as the center of a nation's economy, industry, politics and culture. For example, the cultural and political center of China is definitely Beijing while the economic center of China is absolutely Shanghai. Thus, if one wants to study the Chinese society, one must start from Beijing and Shanghai. When he comes to Beijing, he will see the forbidden city, the summer palace, and the temple of heaven, which will give him a comprehensive understanding of Chinese history and culture. Furthermore, when he comes to Shanghai, he will see the skyscrapers in Lujiazui, the financial center of China, and then he will understand the huge economic growth of China.
Second, major cities usually have the largest number of residents. People from all over the country come to major cities to make a living so these cities can serve as a miniature of the whole society. For example, the residents of major cities consist of people from the Northern, Southern, Eastern and Western parts of China. Thus, one could hear various dialects and taste a great variety of cuisines from different regions of China. Furthermore, by interviewing with people from different parts of China who make a living in big cities like Beijing and Shanghai, one could acquire a deeper understanding of different Chinese people's lives.
However, it may be biased to understand the most important characteristics of a society only by studying its major cities: due to the globalization, more and more big cities all over the world share some similarities. For example, there are many skyscrapers and wide streets in Beijing and Shanghai, making the major cities look more like each other. People living in major cities become more alike as well because they also share similar lifestyles.
As a result, it is also important to study small villages and rural areas in order to gain a more comprehensive understanding of the whole society. For example, minorities living in the remote Yunnan, Guangxi and Guizhou provinces of China have unique traditions and customs that one cannot experience in major cities. A minority called Dai in Yunnan province has a traditional water-sprinkling festival that people pour water onto each other to celebrate the lunar new year.
More importantly, one must also study the difference between major cities and rural areas. For example, in China, there exists huge inequality between urban cities and rural areas. People living in urban cities like Beijing and Shanghai would receive much better health care service and educational resources than people living in rural areas. Almost all Chinese best universities and best hospitals are located in big cities like Beijing and Shanghai. By contrast, people living in rural areas and remote villages have limited access to education and medical resources. And these underprivileged people could not move freely to the big cities because of the Hukou household registration system. Although rural migrants could find a job in big cities, they often find themselves treated as second-class citizens and their children or family members cannot enjoy the benefits of better medical service and educational resources in big cities. Thus, one should study the difference between major cities and rural areas so that he or she could gain an unbiased understanding of the whole society.
To sum up, to understand the most important characteristics of a society, one must not only study its major cities, but also study its small villages and rural areas. More importantly, one must study the difference between major cities and rural areas to gain an unbiased understanding of the whole society.
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