"Who is the hero of arrogance and dominance: A study of the New Youth Society as a literary club

Author: Zhuang Sen / Country: Mainland China
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2006-06-01
Features: Zhang Shizhao proposed in Jiyin that the "only awakening" we should pursue in the future was "political awakening," placing great emphasis on the "spirit of political fundamentals." The Youth Magazine inherited this focus on the spirit of political fundamentals from Jiyin. On the surface, it emphasized "not discussing politics" and did not directly comment on current affairs. Instead, it aimed to implement the spirit of political fundamentals more concretely in the youth through the dissemination of academic theories, promoting Western new thoughts and ideas such as individualism, guiding youth in learning the "way of self-cultivation and governing the state," and fundamentally improving citizens' sense of awareness. When The Youth Magazine was first launched, Yuan Shikai was dreaming of becoming an emperor. In the call for subscriptions of its inaugural issue, Chen Duxiu explicitly declared: "The nation is declining, and the way and learning are corrupt. The responsibility for the future lies with the youth. The purpose of this magazine is to discuss with the youth the way of self-cultivation and governing the state." Immediately following the call for subscriptions, Chen Duxiu published An Appeal to the Youth, arguing that the rise or fall of a nation depends on the awakening and "consciousness of intelligence" of its citizens, and that hope lies with the youth: "What I wish to weep and plead for is only the fresh and lively youth, who can awaken and strive!" He then outlined six criteria to measure such "youthful awakening and courageous striving," indicating that the purpose of founding The Youth Magazine was to cultivate "new youth"—new citizens who would fundamentally seek a path to save China. At this time, Chen Duxiu's "new youth" was still "individual-centered," and had not yet surpassed Liang Qichao's "theory of the new citizens."
Chen Duxiu also discussed the six "ways of self-cultivation and governing the state" for the "new youth": "autonomous, not enslaved," "progressive, not conservative," "enterprising, not reclusive," "global, not isolated," "pragmatic, not empty," and "scientific, not imaginative." He loudly called for: "If the Chinese people wish to break free from the age of ignorance and avoid being shallow and ignorant, they must quickly catch up, giving equal importance to science and human rights." He emphasized that science and human rights are like "two wheels of a carriage."
The "ways of self-cultivation and governing the state" that Chen Duxiu emphasized were, in terms of political form, an "individual-centered" view of human rights and equality; in terms of social and historical views, a belief in progress; in terms of life views, an enterprising spirit; in terms of national views, a concept of connection with the world; in terms of ethical views, a pragmaticist perspective; and in terms of belief views, a scientific mindset. Essentially, this was a complete negation of traditional Chinese political culture, a thorough excavation of the ideological and cultural foundation of Yuan Shikai's restoration of monarchy, and a preliminary raising of the banner of the "anti-traditionalism" and "science" and "democracy" of the New Culture Movement.
Gao Yihan's The Republic and the Consciousness of Youth went even further, directly declaring in his critique of the fundamental requirements of citizens' quality: "In any country, if one wishes to slightly consider the principles of establishing a state to seek long-term stability and peace, it is inevitable that civil rights will be the essence." Gao Yihan's words were certainly directed at the restorationist tide of monarchy led by Yuan Shikai. Chen Duxiu also refuted the absurdity of monarchy in the form of "letters" and a "record of domestic major events." Therefore, The Youth Magazine did not actually avoid politics.
The Youth Magazine focused on "transforming the youth's thoughts," promoting Western democratic politics, Western new thoughts and ideas, to improve the "ways of self-cultivation and governing the state" of the youth; while cultivating a generation of youth with modern democratic political consciousness, it further concretized the "political awakening" of Jiyin as the "ethical awakening" of the youth.
Chen Duxiu inherited Zhang Shizhao's political philosophy, pointing out that even if the majority of citizens achieved "political awakening," it was merely the first step toward possessing the "true spirit" of a republic. The most important subsequent step for the majority of citizens to achieve the "true spirit" of a republic was the "ethical awakening." Because only with "political awakening" without "ethical awakening," "constitutional monarchy" would not be "born from the conscious and spontaneous initiative of the majority of citizens"—it would be a "false republic" and a "false constitution."
Chen Duxiu further emphasized: Since Western civilization was introduced to our country, the first thing that awakened us was scholarship, which is now widely known throughout the country; second was politics, which has been proven over the years that we can no longer cling to outdated and corrupt practices. In the future, what the Chinese people will doubt and be undecided about will be ethical issues. If we cannot awaken to this, then what we call "awakening" before will not be a thorough awakening—it will still be in a state of confusion and uncertainty. I dare say: "The ethical awakening is the last of the last awakenings."
Chen Duxiu inherited Zhang Shizhao's ideas, proposing that after the Xinhai Revolution, the people's political awakening had already occurred. The reason why the republic was still in a state of "confusion and uncertainty" was entirely because the people's ethical awakening had not yet occurred, and he further concretized the "political awakening" as the "ethical awakening" of the youth. Therefore, The Youth Magazine placed the cultivation of youth at the forefront, guiding youth in governing the state and self-cultivation, and consciously carrying out a revolution in ethical thought. The editorial purpose of The Youth Magazine was the inheritance and development of the editorial thoughts of Jiyin. P016-017