Modern Chinese History

Author: Jiang Yanfu
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-01-01
Features: This book was compiled in the spring and summer of 1938, when the sound of gunfire from the Lugou Bridge was still echoing, and the Japanese invaders were trampling over the northern lands of China. Tao Xisheng, Wu Jingchao, and Chen Zhimai decided to compile the "Art and Literature Series" to address the livelihood of displaced young people. Among the series was the book Modern Chinese History, which was proposed to Jiang Yanfu, who was then unemployed at home, waiting to assume the position of Director of the Administrative Council. Jiang readily agreed and completed the book with remarkable speed in just two months. He considered it "a brief preliminary report on his observations of modern Chinese history." The book was influenced by the American "New Historicism Movement" and was regarded as "a powerful application of new historiographical ideas." It was also seen as a representative work of the "Tsinghua School," which emphasized analysis, synthesis, and holistic understanding, with Jiang himself regarded as "a living embodiment of this school." It was also regarded as a representative work of the "typical liberal," characterized by "unrestrained arguments and no hesitation." It was also seen as a representative work of "nationalism," and an "excellent embodiment of nationalist historiographical thought."
Reasons to Read This Book: He was regarded as having the "true spirit" of "caring for all living beings and applying knowledge for practical use." He was described as a "bulldog in a porcelain shop," "like an ox, full of brute force, charging forward with eyes fixed ahead, which enabled him to overcome all obstacles to achieve his goals." He was seen as a "politician rather than a political opportunist," "with unwavering confidence, not making excuses, not being opportunistic, not compromising, and thus offending many people in his dealings, making it difficult for others to understand or forgive him."
Recommended Readers: Scholars or enthusiasts of modern Chinese history, scholars or enthusiasts of the history of modern Chinese academia, scholars or enthusiasts of the history of modern Chinese optics, scholars or enthusiasts of modernization in China, and students from primary to high school.
This book defines "modern Chinese history" as "the history of modernization in China," and thus the question of whether China could modernize and how it could modernize became the main theme of the book. The book presents three modernization schemes: the Self-Strengthening Movement led by Prince Gong Yixun, Zeng Guofan, and Li Hongzhang as the first scheme; the Reform Movement led by Kang Youwei as the second scheme; and the Boxer Movement as the third scheme. All these schemes ultimately failed. Therefore, the book proposes its own viewpoint: "Modernization of national defense not only requires modern transportation, education, and economy but also modernized politics and citizens. Half-modernized, half-old approaches are useless. In other words, for China to survive in the modern era, it must fully accept Western culture."
The academic tradition pioneered by this book once served as the mainstream framework for the study of modern Chinese history. However, after the modern history research conducted by Fan Wenlan and Hu Sheng and others, this framework was completely replaced by the so-called "new academic tradition" that demanded ideological conformity in the study of modern Chinese history. In the old Chinese historical academia, more than half of the works on modern China and the history of China's foreign relations in modern times were "inheriting" Jiang Yanfu's historiographical views.
This book is known as "a famous small book by a historical office," "high in academic content," "well-known in the historical academia," "one of the great works of modern history," "a timeless classic," "the apex of a pyramid built by a mountain of great works," "every word a jewel, leaving one in awe," "still a classic of modern history," "a masterpiece of historiography," "the foundational work of modern Chinese history," "superior to most later works of the same kind," "pioneering in its approach," "broad in perspective and uniquely innovative," "not mere technical skill but grand craftsmanship," "representing the academic excellence of an era," "making groundbreaking contributions to modern historiography," "a small book with a big history," "condensing ten years of research," "a weighty work of historiography."
This book not only established Jiang Yanfu's academic reputation in the field of modern history research but also reflected the unique understanding of Chinese culture and China's future destiny held by scholars who were impacted by the Western tide during that period.