After 1949 the family was turned toward nation-building,and it served the state.But despite dramatic laws making husbands and wives equal in theory,the basic family structure survived.Two things changed that:the "one child policy" and Deng Xiaoping's epic liberalizing in 1979.
From then on everything accelerated,including the state's withdrawal from people's family lives and an end to the patriarchal structure.
You can barely find a patriarchal family in the city now.Sixty percent of Beijing families are nuclear,run by husband and wife.In Chinese tradition,you need a male heir to carry on the name.You bear children until there is a son; it is extremely important for identity.Yet now 50 percent have no son,and many don't worry about it.
China is now 15 years into an economic "miracle" made possible by the combination of endless cheap labor,a colossus of east coast factories,and by a national capacity for organization and adaptability.The ability to earn enough to buy a car and apartment in the city has created new alternatives and expectations.Many younger Chinese talk about education,travel abroad,fulfillment,and spirituality - as well as work.Families in the city are now accommodating a culture of cellphones,a drying up of the number of aunts and uncles in the family,and acceptance of divorce