Life And Cultivation

The proposal of "govern the country with morality" and the issue of the Implementation Outline of Construction of Civil Morality indicate the popping out of problems of morality and its cultivation in modern social life. But how to address the problem of moral cultivation is not so clear to people. Sticking to the standpoint of being value-neutral, this thesis tries hard to seek the clarity of reason, insisting on calm analyzing and avoiding indignation. It endeavors, on the cultural-psychological level of social ethical cultivation and focusing on the interrelations between individual life and moral cultivation in certain historical circumstances, to analyze how cultivating methods and the corresponding individual culture-psychology change in the transition of traditional moral cultivation to the modernized one. It investigates how and to what extent modern moral cultivation influences the deep culture-psychology of individuals and the deep structure of individual life beings. It also probes into the conscious and unconscious continuation of tradition in the process of modernization and reflects over how individuals should react, on the cultural-psychological level, to the application of various theories in practice in the process of modern moral cultivation.This thesis follows this basic train of thought: based on a general investigation of the relations between individual life and moral cultivation, it probes into the issue of modern moral cultivation in China from such aspects as history, value object, processes, and strategies. In the process of investigating modern moral cultivation, it first works on the relevant issues in Western modern moral cultivation, then, on the basis of relevant issues in traditional Chinese moral cultivation, it deals with the generation and development of modern moral cultivation in China and the tendency of its development, as well as the accumulation of problems and the correspondingcountermeasures. It tries to make its analysis clearly and comprehensively and without being in extremes. This thesis also borrows from Li Ze-hou the concepts of "enlightenment" and "salvation" and thus categorizes modern moral cultivation roughly into the form of enlightening-centered and of revolution-centered, with Lu Xun and Mao Zedong as representatives respectively.As far as history is concerned, this thesis attempts, on the basis of an analysis of the history of the evolution of Chinese modern moral cultivation, to reveal life's hiding and the popping out in the process of modern moral cultivation. At the same time, on the basis of practical problems and new concepts of contemporary moral cultivation in western society, it reveal the dual situation in present moral cultivation of life and the basic tasks of moral cultivation. The fundamental implication of modern moral cultivation includes the integrity and independence of life, the popping out of value and dignity of individual life. The free and full development of every individual is the ultimate objective of modern moral cultivation. Authority is the basic characteristic of traditional moral cultivation in China, so, with individual life being covered up by the holy "(heavenly) truth" and "human" being covered up by the identity of "common people", the traditional moral cultivation became the "cannibalistic" one. From the end of Ming dynasty and the beginning of Qing dynasty when initial thought of enlightening education emerged till the May Fourth?Movement, the enlightenment of modern moral cultivation in China developed with difficulty, detecting the nature of "human" as well as the "cannibalistic" feudal ethics.Due to the hard reality, the deep-rooted tradition, and the weakness of enlighteners themselves, the enlightenment has not been actually accomplished. Consequently, the popping out of individual life and the full development of a sense of life remain to be achieved today. We have to reflect on the tradition while keep an eye on the reality, reflect on old authority while watch against the emergence of new a...