This study applies Pierre Bourdieu’s field theory as an analytical framework to examine the development of Peking opera along the Beijing Central Axis during the Qing Dynasty. It explores how the interaction between the court and folk fields contributed to the formation of its artistic form. From this perspective, social space is understood as a structured network of objective relations, shaped by the distribution of different forms of capital and the habitus of social actors. In the Qing Dynasty, as the core of political and cultural activities, the Peking opera field along the Beijing Central Axis was divided into two major sub-fields: the court field, centered around imperial power and subject to political discipline, and the folk field, market-oriented and following secular logic. By analyzing the differences between the two fields in terms of core power, spatial characteristics, capital distribution, and the habits of actors, this study reveals their two-way interaction achieved through the movement of artists, adaptation of repertoires, and capital conversion. The interaction between the two fields was not symmetrical: while the folk field contributed performative vitality and responsiveness to audience demand, the court provided institutional authority and symbolic legitimacy. Ultimately, in the dynamic balance between power and the market, the unique form of Peking opera, characterized by the integration of elegance and vulgarity, is refined. This study deepens our understanding of the interaction between spatial organization and artistic form, while further elucidating how power, culture, and art were structurally interconnected in the Qing Dynasty through the framework of field, capital, and habitus. In doing so, it offers both theoretical insights and empirical evidence for interdisciplinary research on the social and cultural functions of traditional art.
Xing et al. (Wed,) studied this question.