Decoding China's new left phenomenon

Abstract

China has been through tremendous changes in the past thirty years. The

country not only experienced a drastic transformation in its socioeconomic

sphere, but also in its academic field. One of the most notable academic

movements is the on-going debate between China’s New Left scholars and the

Chinese liberals, which is developing alongside the deepening of reform in the

country. The New Left scholars argue that China must design an original

development path and to avoid excessive copying from the modernization model

in Western countries. They have identified many problems that occurred in the

society in recent years, which arguably resulted from the country’s rapid

development. This thesis aims to decode the two most prominent perspectives

from the New Left scholars – China’s revolutions and its economic reform.

To explicate their perspectives, I draw on the studies of New Left scholars

such as Wang Hui, Cui Zhiyuan and Gan Yang, as well as a few selected articles

from the liberal side of the debate. Through exploring the various publications,

this thesis has hopefully demonstrated a coherent clarification of the

still-blossoming new intellectual phenomenon. Furthermore, this thesis also aims

to alter the stereotypical discrimination against Leftism and its derivatives, as the

results have clearly shown that the New Left scholars are not anti-development

and in fact, they are calling for no more than an alternative modernization path for

the country.