Several Issues Concerning the Theory of Human Beings

Chinese Studies in Philosophy 16 (2):31 (1984)
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Abstract

The study of the issue of human beings has experienced a tortuous and bumpy road in China. Over the previous more than twenty years since liberation all viewpoints endorsing a common human nature and humanism had been arbitrarily subjected to criticism and suppression, tagged as the human nature theory of the landlord and bourgeosie classes and revisionism. This not only violated the academic principle of allowing a hundred schools of thought to contend but also strangled some truthful ideas and held back the progress of Marxism. For a time things went even to such an extent that it appeared only theoretical circles of the West and Europe paid attention to human beings and showed concern for them, while Marxist theoretical circles in China ignored man and would not talk about man. This situation has experienced a great change since the Third Plenum of the party's 11th Central Committee. People of our literary and art circles and those of theoretical and philosophical circles have in recent years laid great emphasis on the study and discussion of the theoretical issue of human beings. Seminars have been held many times, articles published in great numbers, and penetrating and detailed polemics engaged among different viewpoints. The arguments show that although the contenders each claimed to be Marxist, they differ sharply, and there is no sign of them coming closer to each other. The issue of human beings has always been a major subject of theory. It should be clarified through discussion, and it is quite normal to have different opinions being argued. Aside from differences in the opinions themselves, the arguments also show that to a considerable degree the controversy stems from the difference in how to interpret or apply the concepts. A debate involving different interpretation of the basic concepts cannot arrive at a correct conclusion. To make our discussion more fruitful, this article has to begin with the definition of certain basic concepts

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