New Education Of Chinese Style example essay topic

AIMS- It was a movement that aimed to introduce to China Western concepts such as democracy, equality and liberty; also a new style of writing as well as the latest science and technology of the time. The NCM advanced the intellectual Chinese towards the future. This movement provided the intellectual background which made it possible for the dissatisfaction with the Paris peace settlement to develop into a nationwide anti-foriegn movement. It really afforded the Chinese an intellectual background for those Chinese who loved their nation.

It raised their nationalism in order to protect the nation. The period from 1912-1923 was one of ideological ferme t and the growth of new ideas. There was a necessity to "determine and define the values of the new Republican era. For a society that had been based on the value-ridden Confucian beliefs, Western, materialistic, civilisation and utilitarian culture were rejected by many intellectuals, events moved so rapidly in Twentieth Century China that by clinging to certain views a radical might find himself soon grown Conservative". The growth of the new ideas from 1912-1923 has been called the Chinese Renaissance or the New Culture Movement. It was during this time that Western democracy and liberalism rose and fell as ideas and ideals fro the Chinese Revolution.

The NCM was led by Ch " en Dux in, who founded a monthly magazine called the New Youth. The intent of the magazine was to arouse the youth of the country to destroy the stagnant old traditions and forge a new culture. Ch " en called on the young generation to "struggle against the old and rotten elements of society and to reform their thought and behaviour in order to achieve a national awakening. (HSU-498) The youth were asked to choose the "fresh, vital elements from all the civilisations of the world in order to create a new culture for China". With this purpose in mind, Ch " en proposed the following six principles, which were to be upheld as the main objectives of the New Culture Movement: " (1) to be independent and not servile; (2) to be progressive and not conservative; (3) to be agressive and not retrogressive; (4) to be cosmopolitan and not isolationist; (5) to be utilitarian and not impractical; and (6) to be scientific and not visionary". The NCM's leader Ch " en, vehemently attacked conservatism and traditionalism and made a point of them being seen by the youth to be the roots of China's evils.

Furthermore, Ch " en's objective was to demonstrate that Confucianism, was "the product of an agrarian and feudal social order, totally incompatible with modern life in an industrial and capitalistic society". (HSU-498) Ch " en intended to show that Confucianism must be rooted out because, it made the Chinese people weak and passive, unable to compete in the modern world, "it upheld the inequality of the status of individuals, it made men subservient's and it suppressed freedom of thinking and expression". Hence, Ch " en called for the destruction of conservatism in order to make room for constructing a new culture. Through his attack on traditionalism, Ch " en hit his intended mark by winning an enthusiastic following among the educated youth.

The NCM strongly believed in agnosticism and pragmatism, in liberalism, individualism, science and democracy and the evolutionary improvement of society. Facing the great changes in thought, culture and politics, Cai Yuan-pei started, from 1917, to reform Peking University. It was notified as the rebirth of Chinese education. The principle of thinking free, receiving and enclosing diversified and different thoughts not only make Peking University become the center of the New Culture as well as the birth place of new education, but also afford a good environment for propagandizing Marxism and founding Chinese Communist Party. The youth student patriotic movement in May-Fouth era, supported majorly by Peking University students, enhanced the new education to a high level. MAY 4 Because the democracy with western style lost the absolute beautiful colour, the Chinese reformers, held the direction and ways for educational reform.

Through comparison, reevaluation and investigation of difference between oriental and western, old and new, Chinese and foreign education, they tried to create a new education. The new education in the idea of the educationalists of May-Fouth era was: to value human right, to advocate keeping students and children as major educating objectives, to cultivate them to form a perfect and sound personality as the center of their commitment and to create equality of whole human being as their successful criterion, to break through the education of nationalism, militarism, colonialism, imperialism, money worship and entrepreneur. It was a new education of Chinese style, adaptable to the true democratical society. Such a kind of ideal of new education was identical to the goal of Chinese revolution.

It intended to make China a country of independence, equality and liberty... objectives of movement- "We first discussed the problem of our national crisis and we all agreed that the Shandong problem was caused by corruption and injustice, and that we as students must fight to show the world that 'might should never be right'! Four methods of procedure were then discussed. They were as follows: (1) to get the people of the country to fight together; (2) to send telegrams to the Chinese delegates in Paris and ask them not to sign the treaty; (3) to send telegrams to the people of all provinces in the country asking them to parade on 7 May, National Humiliation Day; (4) to meet (with) on 4 May the students of all the schools in Beijing at 'Tieng-Ang Mein' (Square of Heavenly Peace) and to show our discontent by a great mass parade". 5.7 purposes of demostration- Besides distributing leaflets to the spectators on the streets, the students carried white flags made of cloth or paper, bearing slogans written in Chinese, English and French and caricatures expressing the purposes and sentiments of their demostration. Example of slogans were, 'Protect our sovereignty', 'China belongs to the Chinese', and 'Down with traitors'.