Exploration of the New Culture in Modern China: A Study of Zhang Shenfu's Thought

Author: Guo Yi Qu
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2002-09-01
Features: Zhang Shenfu is regarded as a specialist in Russell studies in China. He made unique contributions to the dissemination of Russell's philosophy in China, Russell's ideas, elucidating Russell's analytic philosophy and calling Russell a "philosophical and scientific philosopher of philosophy and science." Zhang Shenfu believed that the analytic method is the fundamental method of philosophy, an impartial, non-attached, and scientific method. He not only identified with Russell's philosophical thought but also admired Russell's pacifism. From the late 1920s to 1949, Zhang Shenfu was considered one of the main representatives of "dialectical materialism." He believed in the truth value of dialectical materialism, viewing materialism as positive and progressive, and dialectics as emphasizing "vividness" and focusing on "connection." Thus, he proposed a unique way of thinking: the "purely objective method" and the "concrete relativity." The "purely objective method" refers to the materialist perspective, while the "concrete relativity" refers to the application of dialectics. Zhang Shenfu believed that the ultimate purpose of philosophy is "connection." Analysis, pluralism, objectivity, and practicality are all paths to "connection," as well as its applications. In the context of building a new cultural system in China, he neither advocated complete Westernization nor endorsed the conservative cultural view of revering tradition. Instead, he proposed synthesizing "Confucius, Russell, and Lenin" into one, advocating for the integration of the strengths of diverse cultures and absorbing the outstanding achievements of human civilization, "dialectically synthesizing" to build a new Chinese culture. He advocated combining the logical analysis, which excels in "discerning and connecting," with dialectical materialism, which excels in "vividness and connecting." This advocacy can be termed "analytic dialectical materialism."