Criticism And Reconstruction——a Study On The Views Of Intellectuals Hold By Xiong Shili And Xu Fuguan

On the context of national weaknesses and collisions with Chinese and western culture, Chinese culture now is faced up with modern transformation. According to Xiong and Xu’s idea, the key to reassess and reconstruct Chinese culture lies in intellectuals. The issue of intellectuals takes up an important part in Xiong Shili and Xu Fuguan’s thoughts. The intellectual view held by Xiong and Xu in this dissertation contains:criticisms over the intellectuals throughout history and the reconstruction of the role of intellectuals under the modern impact.Xiong and Xu took the knowledge and morality as a critical angle. They approved the value and the meaning of knowledge and morality. Meanwhile, they thought that the source of knowledge and morality is recognizing our conscience. The intellectuals who are criticized by Xiong Shili, including the literati from Han-Jin dynasty, Han and Qing Confucianism scholars, and the intellectuals of Republican period. Xiong takes view of that, Firstly, the literati indulged in Buddhism and Taoism to get undeserved reputation; Secondly, Han Confucianism scholars treat the Confucianism as an umbrella of emperor domination. Besides, Qing Confucianism scholars elbowed out higher learning, they didn’t know what the true life is; thirdly, the intellectuals in Republican period who are in pursuit of Textual Research and Western learning are for "selling knowledge" or "strutting with western learning" caused social disorder.Xu Fuguan analyzed Chinese intellectuals’basic characters in the autocratic time. He believed that due to Chinese moral characters founded in such a culture, there is no objective criterion but relying on one’s heart only. Thus, it contributes to minor intellectuals, not the majority. Intellectuals might easily be egocentric by the stimulation of self-desires. Plus, despotism on systems, many intellectuals had subordinated themselves to despotism. Such kind of inertia within those intellectuals keeps going on in the Republican period. And their chasing new blindly is just a typical behavior of such inertia. While, republican intellectuals combined textual research and western learning which proposed neutral manner to rearrange traditional culture. However, Xu Fuguan holds that personal life can’t be separated with knowledge; rather, personal academic should associate with the nation’s life. Xiong and Xu analyzed that the main shortages of modernity is to let people lose subjectivity. By criticizing intellectuals in history, Xiong Shili and Xu Fuguan contended that reconstructing the role of intellectuals under modernity shock should be divided into three respects:knowledge, morality and politics. First of all, intellectuals should stand for academics, to be unflinching to power and build an intellectual entity. Then, intellectuals should carry forward virtue entity; possess critical consciousness and the responsible spirit. They should take country and nation as their self-personality foothold. Finally, intellectuals should inherit the rebelling spirit of resisting the scholar bureaucrats’despotism. The reconstructing role of intellectuals held by Xiong and Xu is an ultimate concern to rebuild Chinese culture. But the different idea maintained by Xu Fuguan is that if intellectuals want to get rid of the historical destiny of despotism vassals, they have to ask the power of technology, democracy and material construction for help as safeguard.Xiong Shili and Xu Fuguan made moral judgments lightly when commenting the intellectual which is a shortage in Xiong and Xu’s intellectual concept. While, Xu Fuguan realized this problem and positively treat objective power of technology, democracy and material construction etc., which are important to establish strong personalities for intellectuals. Xiong Shili did not pay enough attention to it but Xu made an expansion and promotion later.The criticism of Chinese intellectuals and the conception of reconstructing the role of intellectuals held by Xiong Shili and Xu Fuguan have multiple theoretical significance and realistic significance,which can avoid knowledge having little to do with times and society, tie our life with the life of the nation and the culture together. Furthermore, the proposal of carrying forward the intellectuals’entity can provide references to withstand the modernity impact, and can also offer some bases to reflect the intellectual identity nowadays.