China News Service, Chongqing, December 12 (Xinhua) -- Why is it said that the evolution of Chinese civilization is inseparable from "identity"?

——Interview with Li Yujie, second-level professor of the School of History and Society, Chongqing Normal University

China News Service reporter Zhong Yi

In the history of world civilization, the Chinese civilization, which has lasted for more than 5,000 years, has remarkable characteristics such as unity and continuity, and has constructed the deep values of the Chinese nation with a unique "three-in-one" identity model of nation, state and culture, forming a unique path of historical evolution.

In the vast historical process, what is the relationship between the evolution of the Chinese nation's and national identity consciousness? What is the key role played by the "three-in-one" identity model of the nation, the state, and culture? What are the new challenges to the Chinese civilization in the midst of the great changes in the world? Li Yujie, second-level professor and doctoral supervisor of the School of History and Society of Chongqing Normal University, recently gave an exclusive interview to the China News Service's "East-West Question" on this.

The transcript of the interview is summarized below:

China News Service: From the perspective of historical changes, how do you understand the evolution of the Chinese nation and national identity?

Li Yujie: First of all, we must make it clear that there is a big difference between the concepts of "state" and "nation".

The state is an instrument of class rule, with functions such as social integration, and its normative and institutionalized characteristics are very distinct. A nation is a stable community of people formed at a certain stage of historical development. Generally speaking, ethnic groups share common characteristics in terms of historical origins, modes of production, language, culture, customs, and psychological identity. Religion plays an important role in the formation and development of some ethnic groups.

In China, the cultural and psychological characteristics of the nation are very prominent, and in terms of connotation, they have more internal and "soft" ideological characteristics than the explicit characteristics of state institutionalization, that is, the conscious identification of ethnic members in the national consciousness and the profoundness, inheritance and strength of this cultural and psychological identity.

In the early days of human society, national identity was mainly based on social relations based on biological factors such as blood and kinship. With the development of society, the nation has gradually formed a stable social group in the process of evolution, and has undergone new intersection and integration with the geographical composition to form a social relationship. In the development of human history, national identity and national identity are both interrelated and often different.

However, in the history of Chinese civilization, national identity and national identity are often unprecedentedly identical. For example, in the Spring and Autumn Period, the coordinates of the intersection of the theme of the times were "respecting the king and fighting the country", which not only clearly reflected the major theme of politics and nationality of the times, but also the banner of the transformation of Chinese national identity and national identity to the new era. In a political sense, "respecting the king" highlights the concept of sovereignty of the Chinese political state, and uses the banner of Zhou Tianzi as a symbol of the supreme power of the Chinese political community, so as to follow the institutional order of the Chinese political state through "respecting the king". From the perspective of national significance, "Zhengyi" highlights the Chinese nation's conscious ethnic cognition and self-identity consciousness. In the historical development of the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, these consciousnesses gradually constituted the civilizational characteristics of the integration of the Chinese nation and the state.

After the Qin unified China, with the establishment of a centralized political system, national identity and national identity became more consistent. At the same time, the pattern of pluralism and integration of the Chinese nation before the Qin Dynasty has been inherited, and in the process of ethnic integration and assimilation, on the one hand, it has continuously expanded the ranks of the Chinese nation, making it a nation with a large population today; on the other hand, the geographical and ecological environment of the East Asian continent and the advanced culture of the Chinese nation have continuously attracted many new nationalities and formed a new national pattern of pluralism and integration. It is precisely in this transformation of pluralism and unity that the Chinese nation has developed and grown and has become a special national phenomenon in the world.

Qin Terracotta Army. Photo by Zhang Wei

China News Service: After thousands of years of Chinese dynasties, there have been both great unification and division, why has the "civilization" always maintained a continuous evolutionary process?

Li Yujie: In ancient China, division and integration, conflict and integration often went hand in hand. However, the result of each conflict is always a new adjustment of ethnic relations and production relations at a higher level and on a larger scale, and it leads to the emergence of a stronger and more prosperous unified country and ethnic community, making Chinese civilization more prosperous and splendid.

One of the most important reasons behind the inevitability of the transformation from conflict to integration lies in the deep cultural values accumulated in our national and national consciousness, that is, the consistency of the "trinity" of national and national identity based on cultural identity, which is not self-closed, but shows a form and characteristics of openness, compatibility, cohesion, and etiquette.

First, from the perspective of cultural openness, the cultural concept of the Chinese nation often has a huge integration and inclusiveness that transcends racial and cultural differences. For example, in the era of the great unification of the Qin and Han dynasties, the convergence of the Kanto and Guandong Chinese, the integration of Chu and Han cultures in the Yangtze River and Yellow River Valleys, and the great integration of various ethnic cultures in the Wei and Jin dynasties, made ancient Chinese culture present an open and prosperous state. As long as the moral concepts and values of Chinese culture are recognized, they can be accepted by Chinese civilization, and all kinds of civilization achievements can be blended and brought together.

Ming wedding performance. Photo by Liu Xin

Second, from the perspective of racial and ethnic compatibility, from the Spring and Autumn Period to the Ming and Qing dynasties, many different ethnic groups and ethnic groups around China gradually merged into the big family of the Chinese (Han) nationality through the integration of livelihood, culture, marriage and other aspects. In particular, the Wei, Jin, Song, Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties had several major ethnic conflicts and integrations, which accelerated the process of great ethnic integration. The reason why the Han Dynasty and the Tang Dynasty have been praised for a long time is precisely because of the ethnic integration of the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, the Qin, Han, Wei and Jin Dynasties, and the foundation of Hu and Han intermingling.

Third, from the perspective of the state's security obligations to the nation, in the consciousness of the Chinese (Han) nation, the inseparability of "China" as a sovereign state and the Chinese (Han) nation as the main body of the Chinese nation has also become a consensus among the people. For example, since the Qin and Han dynasties, the defense of the north, the expedition to the south, and the extraterritorial communication of the west have become the most important political, military, and diplomatic priorities of the countries in all dynasties. The construction of the Great Wall in the Qin Dynasty and the large-scale attack on the Xiongnu by Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty were all manifestations of the state's security obligations.

In the history of the world, there are many situations in which a nation has been divided into multiple countries for a long time, but in China, people often regard the country as a symbol of the nation, the nation as the cornerstone of the country, and even regard the dual unity of the country and the nation as a lofty goal to realize the value of life. A national crisis is a national crisis, and in the crisis between the nation and the state, the identity between the state and the nation will often reach an unprecedented agreement, and it will become the life value orientation for which people are willing to go to the fire. This kind of value orientation and national collective rationality involve all aspects of the characters. Even if they are unfair, as long as they touch on the theme of the country and the nation, they will sing with grief and look at death as if they were home. Therefore, whenever a national crisis comes, people often associate "salvation" (nation, culture) and "salvation" (political state), and pin this expectation of saving the nation from peril, hoping that the ruler can shoulder the responsibility of saving the nation and saving the country. In the long history of China, there are countless examples to prove this.

Shaanxi Provincial Intangible Cultural Heritage Inheritance Project Qin and Han War Drums. Photo by Ni Shubin

China News Service: How do you view the importance of the "Trinity" identity model?

Li Yujie: I believe that while it constitutes the deep-seated value concept of the unity of Chinese civilization, it also forms the unique feelings of the Chinese nation.

This is manifested in the fact that both the representatives of the landlord class and the feudal intellectuals (including the spokesmen of the peasant class) often regard the reunification of the nation and the state as their natural political and military mission and highest goal, and even some minority monarchs who are deeply influenced by Han culture also regard the unification of the country as their life's great cause and goal. In modern times, after the Opium War, in the face of the danger of the nation and the country and the task of modernization and development, modern patriots actively explored the path of rejuvenation of the nation and the country, and under the control of the deep value concept of the unity of Chinese civilization, they creatively put forward the idea of the unity of political revolution and national revolution, and built a new Chinese national state with this as the core, which fundamentally eliminated the tension between the identity of the pluralistic and integrated nation and the country, and laid the foundation for the formation of the pluralistic and integrated pattern of the Chinese nation.

Therefore, from a historical point of view, when the increasingly decaying Roman Empire was invaded by the influx of "barbarian peoples" from all directions and blocked the development process of civilization of its country and nation, China survived and saved itself in the dangerous situation of national and class contradictions. This shows that China has a very strong internal mechanism for self-regulation and coping with challenges. The basis of this self-regulation is the deep-seated values of national identity and national identity established on the cornerstone of the unity of Chinese civilization.

On August 2023, 8, the ceremony of compatriots on both sides of the strait to pay tribute to the ancestor Emperor Yan was held at the Mausoleum of Emperor Yan in Baoji City, Shaanxi Province. Photo by Dang Tianye

China News Service: In the process of globalization, what challenges will the development of Chinese civilization face?

Li Yujie: Since the second half of the 20 th century, along with the process of modernization and globalization, many new problems have emerged in the world civilization and economic order as we entered the new century. It is manifested in the fact that some non-Western countries and nations are at a loss in the contradiction between modernization and localization, and often fall into the trap of civilizational imbalance, which leads to cultural contradictions and clashes of civilizations.

China is also facing a transition stage between the old and the new in the wave of globalization, but the inherent characteristics of Chinese civilization will promote the accelerated development of the country in the process of globalization. These characteristics are as follows: The openness and inclusiveness of Chinese culture make it easy for Chinese people to overcome the discomfort of tradition and modernity; the compatibility of the Chinese nation makes it easy for Chinese people to cross the gap between religion and race; the spirit of joining the WTO with pragmatism and application makes Chinese generally have the quality of bearing hardships and standing hard work; the state has a strong backing role in the great changes in civilization; and Chinese civilization can produce tremendous vitality in building a new form of human civilization.

On the whole, the above-mentioned characteristics make the background color of Chinese civilization clearly displayed in the process of globalization, and complement each other in the development of modernization and localization, without showing the hesitant and contradictory group social psychology, and there is no conflict between Chinese civilization and other civilizations.

People have reason to believe that in the historical process of realizing the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, China can embark on a development path suited to its own characteristics in accordance with the unique cultural traditions, historical destiny and basic national conditions of the Chinese civilization, and show great vitality in the rise of creating a new form of human civilization. (ENDS)

On November 2023, 11, a light show was staged on a high-rise building in the CBD of Chaoyang District, Beijing. Photo by Jia Tianyong

Interviewee Profile:

Li Yujie is a second-level professor and doctoral supervisor of the School of History and Society of Chongqing Normal University, and a doctoral supervisor of the School of History and Culture of Sichuan University. He has successively served as the vice chairman of the Chongqing Federation of Social Sciences, the vice president of the Chinese Society of Social History (a national first-class society), the director of the Chinese Historical Society, and the director of the International Confucian Federation. His research interests include Chinese intellectual history, social history, and anthropology. His representative works include "The Evolution of Wu and Its Role in the Origin of Chinese Civilization", "Political Unification and Taoism: A Study of Chinese Traditional Culture and Political Ethical Thought", "The Politics of Foreign Relatives in Ancient China", and the editor-in-chief of "History of Chinese Classics", "History of Social Control Thought in the Qin and Han Dynasties", "History of Chongqing Immigration", etc.