"Iron Hook" And "Tofu": Study On Liang Shuming’s Thoughts In 1950s

Since 1990 s,there was great progression in Cultural Studies in mainland China.However,the lack of consciousness of localization was still an universal problem.In this sense,the rediscovery of the theories and experience of Chinese Revolution would be of great significance to the promotion of studies on issues of class,nation-state,the third world and global capitalism.Is it possible to develop a kind of Cultural Studies that combines with the theories and experience of Chinese Revolution? As an attempt,this thesis focuses on Liang Shuming’s thoughts in 1950 s.With the methods of discourse analysis,intellectual history and political economy,concentrating on the debate between Liang Shuming and Mao Zedong in 1953,taking Liang’s thoughts from 1920 s to 1940 s and the historical context into consideration,the thesis reinterprets Liang’s thoughts in 1950 s,and also explores a new perspective to understand the complexity of China’s socialist practice in 1950 s.Although many scholars have argued about the debate between Liang and Mao in 1953,the studies on the inner logic of Liang’s thoughts in 1950 s are inadequate.Starting from the two questions,“the mass movement” and “the gab between workers and peasants”,which Liang raised in 1953,this thesis analyses the inner logic of Liang’s thoughts in 1950 s.Chapter 1 is the introduction of this thesis,which includes the research background,literature review,research method and the structure of this thesis.Chapter 2 and chapter 3 focuse on the structural position of the concept of“the mass movement”in Liang’s thoughts:shaping the political subjectivity of the people,changing people’s subjective state that like“tofu”which means weakness,organizing and empowering people,and getting people involved deeply in the building of nation-state.This is also the specific historical meaning of Liang’s theory of“national spirit”(民族精神)/“lixing”(理性)/“renxin”(人心).Liang’s thinking on this closely connected with the“tofu problem”which he had been thinking about since 1920s.That is to say,as an analytical perspective,“tofu problem”would help us understand the inner logic of Liang’s thoughts in 1950s(and even his thoughts from 1960s to 1980s).Without this perspective,it would be difficult for us to grasp the particular connotation of Liang’s thinking in the early 1950s,1953 and 1959.Chapter 4 focuses on the problem of the gap between workers and peasants,which was closely connected with the urban-rural relationship and industry-agriculture relationship in the historical context of industrialization in early 1950 s.This chapter analyses the historical background of Liang’s critique and the debate between the two — the dilemma of accumulating capital and industrialization in a capital-scarce country.Based on the observation of the historical experience of western industrialization,Liang had been thinking deeply about this problem since the 1920 s.Together with the cognition of China’s national conditions,he came up with an alternative industrial plan,“developing industry by promoting the development of agriculture”.The purpose behind the plan was to,on one hand,make China an industrialized country,and on the other hand,avoid the social crisis that occurred in western historical experience.Liang’s thinking on this closely connected with his worry about the “iron hook”,which means the destruction of the rural areas by the self-strengthening movements.This is the impetus for his critique of “the gap between workers and peasants” in 1953.The reason why he changed his critical attitude in late 1950 s was that he saw the possibility that the “iron hook” also promoting resources back to the rural area.Chapter 5 summarizes the thesis and pointed out that the pair concepts,“iron hook”and“tofu”,run through his thoughts and mind.His important theories and practices,such as the theory of“national spirit”(民族精神)/“lixing”(理性)/“renxin”(人心),his analysis of industrialization,the rural-urban relationship and the industry-agriculture relationship,were the different forms of the expression of this pair concepts in different historical contexts.From the perspective of“iron hook”and“tofu”,we can analyze Liang’s thoughts and its inner logic in 1950s clearly and deeply.Furthermore,because of Liang’s thinking on important issues in Chinese revolution and socialist practice,our understanding of Liang’s thoughts in 1950s would also help us grasp the complexity of Chinese revolution and socialist practice.