Introduction

This chapter introduces a new framework that goes beyond the conventional model of filial piety to explore the rich, nuanced, and often unexpected intergenerational dynamics. The chapter first examines social conditions that have resulted in an inverted generational hierarchy and develops the conceptual tools of post-patriarchal intergenerationality and neo-familism. Then it offers a sketch of other chapters in the volume, each of which speaks to the new framework, albeit from very different perspectives, through vivid portraits of how new patterns of intergenerational dynamics are redefining the Chinese family.