May 4th Memories Of Teachers And Students Of Peking University

The history of the May 4th Movement has a special place in the collective memory of the teachers and students of Peking University.The generations of Peking University’s memories and commemorations of the May 4th Movement have continuously affected their actual actions and spiritual world.When the May Fourth Movement took place,it was just a specific historical event.At that time,the teachers and students of Peking University experienced the movement in different ways.Because of their different positions in the incident,everyone saw a different May 4th appearance,which formed different recognition of the May 4th Movement.To a certain extent,this different recognition also affected their choice of different futures.Over time,the position of this event in the history has gradually shown.The teachers and students of Peking University who had personally experienced May 4th also gave more meaning to the May 4th Movement according to the actual needs.The literary disputes and ideological changes that occurred before the May 4th Movement in Peking University were regarded as the ideological foundation for the May 4th Movement,and the ideological changes that occurred in society after the May 4th Movement were regarded as the results of the May 4th Movement.They closely linked the cultural ecology of Peking University with the occurrence of the May 4th Movement and social changes.While rendering May 4th history,they also magnified the glory of Peking University.Others focus on the revolutionary content of the May 4th Movement.However,whether it is the cultural or revolutionary memory of the May Fourth Movement,the memories of different people in different times and under different identities are always inconsistent.In addition,their interaction with the history of the May 4th Movement occurred at multiple levels.They not only used the May 4th Movement to call for their cause,or used the history of Peking University to understand May 4th and gave May 4th a new connotation,but also put May 4th history into Peking University’s school history framework to recognize and encourage themselves.This laid the foundation for May 4th as the mythical material of Peking University,and laid the groundwork for generations to use May 4th to build Peking University’s social image and influence teachers and students’ actions.In the war era,Peking University,which struggled to survive,used May 4th history as a spiritual medicine.Whenever the school was impacted or the country is in crisis,May 4th memories would be called to support and influence the actions of Peking University teachers and students.When the school faced a merger,the sharp sword they held was their own history.The memory of the May 4th Movement not only supported their uncompromising spirit,but also guided their actual actions.When the country suffered aggression but the government did nothing,the May Fourth memory was a mirror of their reflection on reality and internal differences.In the midst of the war,the teachers and students of Peking University always continued the May 4th memories in various forms.During the period of the Southwest Associated University,they persisted in commemorating May 4th in different ways.Whenever they charged the government with a student movement,they thought they have inherited the spirit of the May Fourth Movement.The May Fourth memory contains endless spiritual power for them.After the founding of the People’s Republic,the new government of the people made a request for the unification of memory,and Peking University also began to transform May Fourth memory,but the process was not smooth.The confusion of reality and the inadequate understanding of the changes in the relationship between May 4th history and Chinese reality once caused confusion in memory.After the reform and opening up,with the deepening of people’s understanding of the socialist road,the ways in which the May 4th Movement affected Peking University teachers and students,as well as the reason and purpose of their memory of the May 4th Movement,have changed.In the new century,the memories of the May 4th Movement do not exist as a guide for their specific actions,but as their spiritual support.People commemorating the May Fourth Movement no longer point to specific issues at the moment,but to the future.As the relationship between May 4th history and reality changed,the content and transmission methods of May 4th memories of Peking University also changed.In addition to the official-led commemorative acts,many teachers at Peking University passed the May 4th memories by themselves.The consensus on commemorating May 4th constitutes a solid foundation for Peking University’s collective identity.However,the May 4th memory also brought many realistic challenges to Peking University.They need to be alert to historical nihilism and to the misuse of May 4th history,and should be able to withstand the pressure of the May 4th movement’s social memory.