Maumeh Rafie, Vahid Riahi, Sohrab Yazdani, Farshid Mehri,
Volume 14, Issue 54 (2-2026)
Abstract
Objective: With the formation of the discourse of the Asian mode of production formulated by Marx and Engels in the late 19th century, and based on geographical, social, and political components, the village was recognized as the main base and the top of the theory of the Asian mode of production. Following the placement in the process, in which the village is the validity and fundamental characteristic of the theory, relations emerged that can be interpreted collectively in a comprehensive and superior connection with rural geography. This research aims to explain the position of the village in the theory of the Asian mode of production by reviewing the theory and different interpretations of various sciences on the subject of the position of the village.
Methods: The statistical population of this study is the documentation of various sciences, especially historical studies, economic sciences, social sciences, and sometimes geographical sciences, related to the theory of the Asian mode of production. For this purpose, related studies, especially in African regions and the countries of China, Korea, Iran, and Russia, which the study of the discourse of the Asian mode of production focuses on, have been reviewed. The research method in this study is interpretive, with a review of examples and evidence adopted from the texts.
Results: By putting together about 80 exemplary witnesses, seven core and focal categories were obtained from which the village can be interpreted as the main context for the formation of the Asian production theory. An authoritarian society, influenced by centralized power, dominated by a subsistence economy, self-sufficiency, one-way management, and a closed social order, is also characteristic of rural societies in their Eastern (Asian) context.
Conclusions: In societies where the discourse of Asian production has been discussed, the village is first the main context for the formation of the theory of Asian production; then, in interpretations of the Asian production method, the village is known as an authoritarian society, influenced by centralized power, dominated by a subsistence economy, self-sufficient, with one-sided management, and with a closed social order.
