Contemporary Chinese Thought and the Question of Modernity
Encyclopedia
"Contemporary Chinese Thought and the Question of Modernity" is an influential article of around 35,000 characters in length by Chinese
intellectual historian
and literary scholar Wang Hui
, written in 1994 and published in left-wing literature journal Tianya in 1997. It became the subject of intense debate and attention both for its methodology
—an unusually socio-historical approach to intellectual history—and its expressed politics
, which are critical of capitalist modernity. According to academic Yue Gang, it is "a cornerstone in the transformation of contemporary Chinese thought" and "has become a benchmark for the New Left."
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
intellectual historian
Intellectual history
Note: this article concerns the discipline of intellectual history, and not its object, the whole span of human thought since the invention of writing. For clarifications about the latter topic, please consult the writings of the intellectual historians listed here and entries on individual...
and literary scholar Wang Hui
Wang Hui
Wang Hui was a Chinese landscape painter, one of the Four Wangs. He, and the three other Wangs, dominated orthodox art in China throughout the late Ming and early Qing periods.Of the Four Wangs, Wang Hui is considered to be the best-known today....
, written in 1994 and published in left-wing literature journal Tianya in 1997. It became the subject of intense debate and attention both for its methodology
Methodology
Methodology is generally a guideline for solving a problem, with specificcomponents such as phases, tasks, methods, techniques and tools . It can be defined also as follows:...
—an unusually socio-historical approach to intellectual history—and its expressed politics
Politics
Politics is a process by which groups of people make collective decisions. The term is generally applied to the art or science of running governmental or state affairs, including behavior within civil governments, but also applies to institutions, fields, and special interest groups such as the...
, which are critical of capitalist modernity. According to academic Yue Gang, it is "a cornerstone in the transformation of contemporary Chinese thought" and "has become a benchmark for the New Left."
See also
- Wang Hui. "Dangdai Zhongguo Sixiang Jingkuang yu Xiandaixing Wenti" ["Contemporary Chinese Thought and the Question of Modernity"]. Tianya 5 (1997).
- Wang Hui, tr. Rebecca E. Karl. "Contemporary Chinese Thought and the Question of Modernity." Social Text 55: Intellectual Politics in Post-Tiananmen China (1998): pp. 9–44.