Abstract There are sufficient expressions of agriculture, village and farmers in textbooks, which ideology and social change are presented. This qualitative research is based on grounded theory which deals with two sets of Chinese textbooks of different historical periods. Firstly, it is found in this research that the body of farmer is gradually driven away from land. To be specific, strength is no longer a positive value of body, while hands are less depicted as a positive link to the nature, for hands are replaced by machines and techniques. Moreover, people eat to enjoy rather than to get rid of hunger. Secondly, the traditional social tie of village also changes. Compared with the previous social, when family and village played important role in workplace and social norms, the national state is now highly respected, which may at the expense of the traditional social solidarity. The political elites in villages also replace the traditional elites, and act as leaders or heroes. At the same time, ideas on economics also change since poverty is not related to being noble at all. Lastly, the interaction between humans and the environment turns out to be faded. Whereas, the scenery is massively discovered, reflecting the change of the relationship between humans and the environment that those who live in modern society like to enjoy the beautiful scenery in the country to memorize past days.
