Abstract

This research paper looks at how farmers in the People’s Republic of China in the 1970s used methods ranging from early imperial China to the modern era to control insects (chong 虫) in a way that could protect crops as well as a healthy environment. The practices they drew upon were based on the Daoist notion of maintaining balance between heaven, humans, and the earth. These practices used human labor or other organisms keep insects away from crops, and they viewed these “pests” as beings that needed to balanced rather than eradicated. This philosophy would be absorbed by the scientific farming philosophy of 1970’s China, creating a system that mixed modern technology and scientific ideas with the practices and philosophies of the past.

Advisor

Ng, Margaret

Department

History; Environmental Studies

Disciplines

Asian History | Chinese Studies | Entomology | History of Science, Technology, and Medicine

Keywords

pest control, China, agriculture, locusts

Publication Date

2026

Degree Granted

Bachelor of Arts

Document Type

Senior Independent Study Thesis

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© Copyright 2026 Trevor J. Mullen