An analysis of Valerie Nichols
The purpose of this entry
During the 1990s, Wang Hui has undertaken a major intellectual project is description of the evolution of thinking about modernity overview of the history of Chinese ideas of the Song Dynasty (960-1269) in the fall of the imperial regime in 1911.
Over ten years of hard work resulted in the publication of six volumes on modern Chinese thought, and a forthcoming book on November 16 2009 in English under the title The End of the Revolution: China and the Limits of Modernity .
Wang Hui's work is primarily a theoretical deconstruction of Eurocentric concept of modernity. He wants to offer a more accurate reading of developments in China that goes beyond the mere quantitative assessment of its level of modernization in a given period. Indeed, Wang Hui criticizes the American Sinology, specifically those from the school Fairbank limit their analysis to judge China's economic development, political and culture. This ruling, said Wang Hui, ignores the magnitude of any existential reflection on modernity in the Chinese world and does not take sufficient account of the specific Chinese.
Wang Hui's writings are quite difficult to approach and requires a sharp knowledge not only of Chinese philosophy, but also major Euro-American theoretical models (Foucault, Braudel, Derrida ...) Since the beginning of his career academic, Wang is also social commentary, which allowed him to become known (and admired hate) by an audience beyond the borders of history ideas. Thus, even during this period of intensive research, Wang Hui took part with great energy to academic discussion more down-to-earth about the failures of economic reforms in China. In these tests the most controversial Chinese thought and the question of modernity, Hui Wang tries to explain his thoughts on the modern building on the example of the ideological evolution of China since 1949. Published in 1997, the test to better understand the theoretical approach of Wang Hui. More importantly, it teaches us about the theoretical ambiguity which are immersed in the intellectual Chinese at the turn of the twenty-first century.
There is also the most controversial implication of Wang Hui: trying to turn his theoretical reflections in a concrete analysis of what China should become in the coming years, all published in a magazine in mainland China. Is it successful?
Above all, define modernity
The great theme that is exploited here is the question of modernity and the way in which Chinese intellectuals should apprehend him. There are contrasting two ideas: the modernization as a theory of development and modernization as a concept present in the Chinese discourse. The first definition considers the modernization as a technical process of transition from a feudal society and traditional urban and industrialized society. On the other hand, modernization in the Chinese discourse and normative teleological perspective. "It Is a type of thinking-through Which China's social praxis IS Understood as a Path Toward an ontological Historical Goal, Which in turn Fosters an attitude that link existential Meaning To The Historical Goal, Which in turn Fosters an attitude that link existential Meaning To The Which is one Historical Period Finds oneself. "In other words, become modern also means improving the collective fate in response to specific problems generated by the political, economic and cultural environment.
The three versions of Marxism
In the trial discussed here, Wang Hui portrays the three versions of Marxism that developed in China in the twentieth century to explain the relationship between Marxism and modernization. The avowed purpose of Wang Hui is to highlight the great theoretical potential of a rigorous analysis of the Maoist experience.
The first version of Marxism is said Wang, a anti-modern theory of modernization. It refers directly to Maoism and the experience from 1949 to 1976. It is rooted in intellectual relativism Chinese reformers of the early twentieth century. The project thinkers of that time were to find a more acceptable to the Chinese context. Kang Youwei, Zhang Binglin and Sun Zhongshan (Sun Yat-sen) were modernizing China that respects the uniqueness and value of traditional Chinese civilization, and on the basis of this desire, shaped utopias "universalist" which included both China and the West. Wang Hui rightly reminds that Marxism was imported, then processed in China during the same period. The most influential version, Maoism, is strongly inspired by the spirit of doubt and criticism.
Thus, Mao himself believed also to the need of modernizing China. However, this will be combined to egalitarian utopianism that protected in some way the project to repeat the same mistakes that capitalist societies. This explains the fact that Wang Hui defines modernization efforts as "anti-modern." On a practical level, experience has revealed in full Maoist contradiction as Wang points out: the modernization of state infrastructure was followed by their destruction during the Cultural Revolution, the nationalization of the economy for the benefit of the mass was done at the price of its autonomy. The end of the Cultural Revolution and Mao's death precipitated the rejection of such a form of modernization.
The second version of Marxism is a form of pragmatic Marxism (which has the name of Marxism). He opposes not only the system of public ownership and egalitarianism, but also to the centralist dictatorship. We can mark the emergence of the early economic reforms in 1978. The ultimate goal of Marxism is always pragmatic modernization of China, but this time by removing all the utopian perspective of Maoism (his anti-modernity). This is no time to criticize capitalism and (the ultimate theory of modernization) and its failures. Now we must apply. At the same time, said Wang Hui, China is "gradually absorbed into the capitalist world market." These two phenomena are perceived as evidence of the historical progress of China. However, said Wang Hui, the rejection of utopianism (the anti-modernity) immediately created the conditions favorable to the exacerbation of social inequalities.
During this period démaoïsation is developing a third version of Marxism or socialism or Marxism utopian humanist. This new form draws heavily from a similar rejection of exaggerations of Maoism and calls for reform of Chinese Marxism based on free individual. This intellectual initiative is largely inspired by the work of philosophers in Eastern Europe on the manuscript of the young Karl Marx's philosophical work from Eastern Europe. His chief-of-file was the journalist and philosopher Wang Ruoshui (1926-2002), who introduced in his writing the first review of the disposition. According to Wang Hui, despite its theoretical qualities, this version of Marxism was unable to find concrete solutions to problems created by the reforms not criticizing the Maoist experience.
The rejection of any criticism of the ideology of modernization in these two versions of Marxism has led, according to Wang Hui, the acceptance of the modernization policy of the Chinese government. Too busy to deconstruct the Maoist experience and eagerly imported Western ideas, the Chinese intellectuals of the 80s have become partners the new monolithic ideology of modernization. They failed to predict and prevent abuses of the capitalist experience. Such an atmosphere of certainty of brilliance Western accelerates implantation in the political arena of the perfect ideology for modernization: neoliberalism. (What a burden of responsibility on the shoulders of these brave intellectuals of the 80s!)
Thus, according to Wang Hui, the real problem in contemporary China is not the Communist Party, but the continued modernization project today . Wang Hui goes even further. Tiananmen is foremost in his movement office in which social contradictions generated by the application of the theory of modernization have been unveiled.
short, it is imperative to draw today in the original version of Chinese Marxism in order to reactivate the critique of capitalism and thus to find a modernity that suits the Chinese model. So the great intellectual project to which Wang Hui urged his colleagues in 1997.
Evaluation
By removing all the superfluous rhetoric of this test (the reference to Marxism which is the defensive weapon of the Chinese academic year 90), the ideas of Wang Hui seem pretty simple. In wanting to reject the folly of such major crackdown on Maoist Great Leap Forward and the Cultural Revolution, intellectuals have forgotten why the Chinese communist revolution. In doing so, they became self-publicists of technical modernization in China precipitating experience of modernization that exacerbates economic disparities without lead "naturally" to political democratization in China. In this perspective, this proposal seems quite convincing Wang:
"work Thus, we can not be The One hand and reject criticism o while socialist history, The Other is, use this critical Sami and to justify rejection o Process of Modernization in The Contemporary World. "P.134
The picture painted here of the evolution of theories of modernization in Communist China is quite attractive. China is emerging as one of the most significant examples of over-reliance on market and blind acceptance of neoliberalism trials of Wang Hui have found a very receptive ear to France where he appeared healthy as Chinese scholars' s so as opposed to neoliberalism front nascent Chinese. Wang Hui's ideas appeal especially to the editors of diplomatic world who have published in an abridged version of Wang Hui four trials, making the Chinese University as published in the influential journal of ideas.
Some limits of university autonomy can be identified by the tone taken in this test. Hui Wang continues to use terms familiar to Marxist language while avoiding more problematic to define the terms such political democratization, freedom and autonomy. The communist regime is never directly criticized. Thus, the real strength to fight, neoliberalism, neither face nor nationality. Nevertheless, it becomes hazardous to the account of self-censorship all the ambiguities of Wang Hui.
As intellectual manifesto for the Chinese academic community, however, the test lacks finesse. The biggest problem of this essay is, in my opinion, its lack of human empathy justified by a desire to provide a holistic analysis of the Chinese situation. Wang Hui, omniscient observer, discredits the courageous work of several pioneers of the 80s, particularly Wang Ruoshui regretting their failure theory. It will be recalled that his humanist socialism was bitterly criticized publicly by Hu Qiaomu, a artifact of the Long March, halting the theoretical prediction. More disturbingly, Wang Hui directly involves the intellectuals of the 1980s the emergence of neoliberalism in China!
Certainly, Wang Hui is right to address the over-enthusiasm for the American during the 1980s, little critical analysis of Western theorists by Chinese intellectuals and their inability to provide full range of consequences of economic reforms. In its analysis, Wang Hui seems to ignore the principle of evolution of ideas which he himself has benefited. Is it not itself the product of university economic reforms? Does not he continues the work of intellectuals of the period of enlightenment, with a freedom of movement that they would never have dreamed? The epic
University Wang Hui in the world of Chinese thought is somewhat fascinating. The historiography of the history of Chinese ideas certainly benefit from the rigorous work and refinement of this researcher of high quality. However, more than 10 years after writing his essay, most discussed, the search for a renewed idea of the modern Chinese (non-Eurocentric) still to complete.
Valerie Nichols, Hong Kong
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