Improving national cultural soft power and building a country with strong socialist culture are requirements to construct a modern socialist country. Philosophy and social science are important driving forces to promote historical development and social progress; a representation to show a nationality’s thoughts, theory, spirit and moral quality and a signature and leading thought to build a country with strong culture. It’s difficult to build such a country without thriving philosophy and social science and there will be no leading thoughts to establish a modern socialist country. We need to develop philosophy and social science with Chinese characteristics to lead us to the future and the rejuvenation of Chinese nation by improving social civilization and shaping thought, ideas, spirit, fashion and behavior suitable in the current era.
Cultural confidence is the most fundamental and richest strength lasting the longest time while philosophy and social science is the basis, accumulation and vein of culture. Philosophy and social science reveals the development rules of human society and constructs the theoretical foundation to build a country with strong culture. It shapes people’s spiritual world and characters and formed the spiritual origin to build a country with strong culture. It nurtures the nationality’s capability of thoughts and theory, improves the level of theoretical innovation of the nationality and decides the level of international influence of the country with strong culture. Engels said, “A nationality on the peak of science can’t live without theoretical thoughts for a moment.” From ancient time, Chinese society has witnessed Pre-Qin Philosophies, classics of Western and Eastern Han Dynasty, Wei Jin metaphysics, Buddhist philosophy during Sui and Tang dynasties, Confucian school of idealist philosophy of the Song and Ming dynasties and ideological trend of pragmatic education during the Ming and Qing dynasties, so the country has experienced multiple periods of prosperous academy, during which were abundant theoretical achievements, including philosophy and social science and wisdom of politics and country governance. This is why Chinese civilization has been in the leading position in the world and has created peaks of civilization.
In the history of world modernization and social development, building a great modern socialist country that is prosperous, strong, democratic, culturally advanced, harmonious, and beautiful is a great historical act and a large social reform, so there’s no ready plan and path. It’s not only a problem of scientific and technological modernization, but coordinated development of economy, politics, culture, society, ecological civilization and national defense, so we need to have a clear idea of rules and the system to build a modern socialist country in all aspects to offer theoretical support to realize the second centenary goal. The support must be systematic and original. It inherits early achievement as well as belongs to our nationality and time. The new leap of Chinese civilization and the practice to build a modern socialist country can’t live without the knowledge revolution and leading thoughts of philosophy and social science. It’s also a good opportunity to promote the great development and prosperity of China’s philosophy and social science. It’s just like what is being said by the general secretary Xi Jinping that “This is an era which needs and will produce theory as well as an era requires and generate thought.” The construction of thoughts and theory is the fundamental project to build a country with strong culture.
May 17th, 2016 saw the philosophy and social science forum which was important for it’s development in China. General secretary Xi Jinping’s speech was the guidance to promote philosophy and social science in a new era. The speech stressed that philosophy and social science represent a country’s comprehensive strength and international competitiveness. Under a new situation, more tasks and a higher status would be granted to this subject. As a result, we needed to insist that Marxism should be in the leading position in our philosophy and social science and accelerated the construction of philosophy and social science with Chinese characteristics; promoted innovation in every field of philosophy and social science; enhanced party’s leadership of philosophy and social science and so on. The speech solidified the base, pointed a direction and designed the whole situation for the development and prosperity of philosophy and social science. We needed to follow the speech and carried out the spirit of the fifth Plenary Session of the 19th CPC Central Committee, the 14th five-year plan and the outline of vision and objectives for 2035, so as to create prosperous philosophy and social science in the process of building a socialist country with strong culture.
Xi Jinping’s thoughts on socialism with Chinese characteristics for a new era is Marxism in the contemporary China, Marxism for the 21st century and a flag for philosophy and social science in a new era. To develop China’s philosophy and social science, we must push forward the overall and systematic research of Xi Jinping’s thoughts on socialism with Chinese characteristics for a new era as well as develop Marxism according to China, people and the current era. We needed to combine the basic principles of Marxism with China’s concrete condition and traditional outstanding Chinese culture, so as to enhance the research of the philosophy’s base in the current era and accumulated cultural base. It can show unique Chinese style of thoughts and philosophy and the distinctive significance in the world during the two historical situation, namely, the great rejuvenation of Chinese nation and profound changes undergoing in the world unseen in a century.
Constructing philosophy and social science with Chinese characteristics is a systematic project and we needed to build an innovation platform for philosophy as well as the research and construction project of Marxism. The key and basis of develop philosophy and social science are talents and teams respectively. We must carry out an overall development strategy for philosophy and social science with talents cultivation as the central work and the project for talents of philosophy and social science, so as to have a talents system with complete subjects and level as well as a sound incentive system. We need to construct a subject system for philosophy and social science with Chinese characteristics, subject system and discourse system to implement the innovation project of philosophy and social science and enhance the new tank with Chinese characteristics.
China is experiencing the most profound and wide-spread social revolution in the history as well as the most amazing and unique practical innovation in human history. We have created a Chinese modern new road and a new type of human civilization, both of which are achievement of the CPC and China’s contribution to philosophy and social science. The unprecedented great practice offers strong driving force and wide space for theory creation and academic prosperity. On a new journey to push forward the “two creation”, we have a lot of new subjects to answer and solve and a lot of new rules to be learned and found. China’s philosophy and social science are on a new journey of great development and will definitely have a large effect in the new creative practice.
Author: Yan Xiaofeng (president of School of Marxism of Tianjin University and researcher of the Tianjin Research Center of Socialist Theoretical System with Chinese Characteristics)