List of figures . . xv
Acknowledgments . . xvii

Introduction . . 1
A history of "new nature" . . 2 
Gender, architecture, and visual culture . . 5 
The organization of the chapters . . 7 

1 Fluid tradition, splintered modernity . . 11
Space, time, and modernity . . 13 
The problem of modernity in China . . 16 
The neo-Confucian continuum . . 17 
The discontents of Confucianism . . 20 
Toward a splintered modernity . . 22 

2 The convergence of writing and commerce . . 27
Imaginative geography and print culture . . 28 
Hybrid journalism . . 32 
Literature of urban consumption . . 37 
Knowing historical experience . . 40 
Wang Tao and courtesan literature . . 43 
The new literati-journalists . . 47 
Han Bangqing and his novel . . 49 

3 Ephemeral households, marvelous things . . 53
Merchant residences and courtesan houses . . 53 
The "family" business . . 56 
The public boudoir: banquets and tea parties . . 60 
Shifting gender roles . . 64 
Magical and fashionable objects . . 71 
Interior settings . . 76 
Destruction and disillusionment . . 80 

4 The meeting of courtyard and street . . 84
Changing views of the pleasure quarter . . 84 
Joint production . . 87 
Fluid space . . 93  
Diverse functions . . 100 
Distinct neighborhoods . . 106 

5 Ultimate ingenuity, amorphous crowds . . 113
The challenge of human ingenuity . . 113 
Marvels on the Bund . . 118 
Flowers of Chessboard Street . . 121 
Streetscapes of Fourth Avenue . . 125 
Spectatorship of street events . . 131 
Markets in the teahouses . . 136 
Shops on First Avenue . . 140 

6 The mingling of magnates and masses . . 144
Restaurants . . 144 
Opium houses . . 148 
Storytelling houses . . 151 
Theaters . . 156 
Street parades . . 164 
Carriages and rickshaws . . 171 
Gardens . . 174 

Conclusion . . 181

Glossary of frequently-used Chinese terms . . 183
List of Chinese characters . . 185
Notes . . 192
References . . 204
Index . . 213