Ideological change in the People's Republic of China : analysis on the criticism of Hu Shi, 1950's-1980's
Date
1990
Authors
Xu, Ying
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Abstract
As the title suggests, the basic theme of this thesis is a theoretical analysis of ideological change in the People's Republic of China from the 1950's to the 1980's that is based on the criticism of Hu Shi's ideas. An introduction to Hu Shi's educational background is followed by an account of his contributions to Chinese intellectual history. The analysis of evaluations of Hu Shi in the l 950's and the l980's forms the third part of the thesis and is highlighted.
This thesis attempts to indicate that political needs are central in the People's Republic of China. All changes, economic, cultural, and ideological, have to meet the requirements of political struggles. Changes in these areas also reflect the situation of political struggles. Marxism is always the theoretical base for evaluation in Communist China. The criticism of Hu Shi's ideas after 1949 followed this pattern. Although the evolutions of Hu Shi in the 1950's and the 1980's are different, the change is slight. The study of Hu Shi in the 1980's is still based on Marxist theory. Based on this argument, this thesis suggests that the evaluation of Hu Shi cannot make profound changes by holding Marxist theory in esteem only. The solution to this problem is to exchange culture and ideas freely with other countries, including the West.