Abstract
The Western invasion of China in the late Ch'ing precipitated changes at teh very core of Chinese politics. The government's central political task became one of encouraging every member of the country to fully develop their own strength, and then unifying this strength in order to increase national power. In attempting to forge this new social bond, the two terms "grouping" and "social organism" were introduced to China. Fu Ssu-nien was heavily influenced by the later term. Fu argued that "generally very few societies in China are societies, for most are nothing more than mobs. All societies true to the name-efficient societies, organic societies-must have a precise organization and a firm, healthy, active force." In this essay, I try to demonstrate how Fu developed his idea of "society" and how, later, he gradually turned away from his earlier conviction.