This volume, the second instalment in the Series on Developing China — Translated Research from China, contains a collection of the most outstanding academic articles written by prestigious Chinese scholars of humanities and social sciences in the past three decades. The volume aims to present to international readers a comprehensive discussion on state and civil society, contextualized in the Chinese perspectives. Important questions are posed, within the context of Chinese national conditions, particularities and histories, to the validity, applicability and viability of the state and civil society paradigm in the Western academia. The in-depth analysis of state and civil society, as accomplished in the volume, includes not only theoretical reflections, but also historical studies and empirical examinations. In the past, research done by Chinese scholars has not been adequately represented in English due to the language barrier. This translated volume shall in no small way supplement the global discourse on state and civil society with the voices from within China.