The origin of political modernity has long been tied to the Western history of protest and revolution, the currents of which many believe sparked popular dissent worldwide. Reviewing nearly one thousand instances of protest in China from the eighteenth to the early-nineteenth centuries, Ho-fung Hung charts an evolution of Chinese dissent that stands apart from Western trends. Hung samples from mid-Qing petitions and humble plaints to the emperor....

Martha is not happy that summer will bring noisy weekly fireworks shows that will hurt her sensitive ears, so she organizes the local dogs to help Mrs. Demson's petition drive to get them banned, only to realize how unhappy that will make Helen.