中文摘要：

所谓近代中国“自由职业者”，并非现在泛指的一般意义上的自由职业者，而是有着特定的时间和范围限制；它不是当今研究者想当然式的自我概括而成，而是在民国时期即已有之，因而完全是一个“原生态”的历史概念。研究近代中国的自由职业者群体，不仅具有重要的学术价值，而且也不乏现实借鉴意义。要在现有基础上推动近代自由职业者群体向纵深发展，除了在挖掘相关原始资料上苦下功夫，需要对近代自由职业者群体的兴起原因及其初步发展，对其职业观念、职制建构、职业活动、社会活动、政治参与、生活样态、相互关系进行深入发掘，并进一步讨论作为整体性的自由职业者群体在近代中国社会的阶层变化、国家一社会关系演进历程中的地位与作用。

英文摘要：

The ＂free professional＂ in Modern China was not the same meaning as the present, which had its specific time and scope. It was an ＂original＂ history concept that abstracted from the modern society of China. The research on the free professional was important not only in science but also useful for reference in reality. If we want to make great progress in the theme, we should make great efforts to look up original data and discuss the cause of its rise, the professional notio＇n, its state of activity and living, etc, and furtherly explore its status or function as a whole group during the course of the charge of social stratum and the development of nation-society relationship in modern China.