The development process of human history is a process of evolution from a small community to a large community.

We have read many thinkers and sociologists' imagination of the ultimate human society, and all of them have come to a common conclusion, that is, mankind will eventually enter the era of the great community of the whole world. In the discourse of ancient Chinese thinkers, this kind of society was called the Datong society. In Marx's discourse, this kind of society is called a communist society. But no matter what kind of society it is, it is ultimately a form of large community.

In the history of ancient China, there have been two times when the social form of a small community has evolved into a large community.

The Fall of the Small Community: What Did the Clan Experience in Ancient China?

The question of clan formation can probably be traced back to the primitive tribal period. In primitive society, in order to better capture prey, people formed a tribal alliance, which is the clan in the earliest sense, and the earliest clan has always been in the form of the heart. After lasting more than 2,000 years, in the Zhou Dynasty, after King Wu of Zhou established the patriarchal system, the concept of clan was formally formed, and the rise and fall of clans and the so-called bloodline originated from this period.

Under the influence of the concept of clan, the individual is replaced by the concept of clan, no longer saying that I am so-and-so, but emphasizing that I am a member of that family, and I represent that clan. So, how can the clan endure for thousands of years?

Since the establishment of the Western Zhou patriarchal system, the concept of blood relationship has become a kind of identity in the bones of Chinese, and this clan system developed with blood ties as a link is really amazing.

● Official default

As a unified country with a vast territory, it is indeed powerless to realize the effective management of various regions, so the official chooses to use Confucianism to build its own ruling foundation, emphasizing the isomorphism of the family and the country, and the concept of governing the country must first govern its family through the form of clans, in order to achieve more effective local management, so in fact, the patriarchs of many places in ancient times often have a certain status in the government, and the combination of the clan and the government, that is, the strong alliance between the ruling class and the big landlords is indeed a good way to grassroots politics, clan rules replace regulations, and law enforcers change from county officials and other officials to patriarchs such as patriarchs.

From a rigid requirement to an inner moral consciousness, if you are a traitor, you will no longer have the face to live in the clan, and the flight is not accepted by other clans, and you will often face the dilemma of fighting for survival in that society, so you can only abide by the clan rules, and then abide by the law, so most of the time, the government has adopted a supportive or acquiesced attitude, awarding knighthoods and commendations to a certain clan, and may even ask for help from the clan in special periods, forming a benign two-way interaction. And only in a few periods did the government establish its prestige by fighting the powerful, and it was indeed a temporary measure that did not last long. Either way, it secretly fueled the arrogance of the clan and allowed it to survive for many years.

● The influence of Confucian culture

Confucianism also contributed to the consolidation of the clan, since the Han Dynasty deposed the hundred schools of thought and respected Confucianism, Confucianism stuck more and more dead in the patriarchal discipline of the three outlines and five constants, Dong Zhongshu reformed, Song Ming Dynasty science pushed it to a climax, and the aforementioned official promotion of Confucianism, so that Confucianism became a code of conduct that had to be followed, people can only continue to debug themselves to follow the outline of Confucianism, Confucianism and the government linked to the days, do not emphasize the outline often do not emphasize blood and even enter the official has become a luxury, in this case, people can only tie themselves in the clan, trapped in the family, so as to gain a foothold in public opinionThis is also an important reason why the clan also ushered in its climax when the Song and Ming dynasties reached its peak in the Ming and Qing dynasties.

● The need for productivity

A clan is a production unit, in the era when the power of nature is far greater than manpower, an individual encounters a natural disaster is a catastrophe, and the clan provides an individual with a risk sharing, benefit sharing of a favorable way to avoid, not only improve the production efficiency of collective cooperation, but also in the disaster year also has a basic life security, in order to survive, people can only choose the clan, and with the later period of the various clans fixed, want to break away from the clan and jump into another clan The possibility is very small, so the birth blood determines the clan belonging, which further leads to the solidification and expansion of clan power。

• The need for war and population movements

When the war years, with the family to flee the field, but not accommodated by the local clan, the people who moved out can only huddle together for warmth, their own militia is ready to defend the clan at any time, in this process the advantages of unity are further revealed, gradually the clan is more and more inseparable, even in the era of peace, it is also in the same line, the younger generations recall the glorious deeds of the ancestors to defend the territory together, Fujian Tulou is a good representative.

Confucianism, the orthodox ideology throughout the history of China, also emphasizes the correct name, and behind the name is actually the representative of the class interests of the three religions and nine streams, so the name is often associated with the rank, hearing your surname can be a preliminary judgment of your origin, family prestige, and personal ability, even if there is no absolute correlation, but it can be called a quick process of labeling people, so this method has been used to this day, and now in some areas of the mainland countryside neighbors are still accustomed to say "this is a person from such and such a family" , not who he is.

Therefore, my honor is actually the honor of the family, and my influence is actually given by the influence of the family, and my personal ability is too limited at this time, far less extensive than the clan influence created by a group of people, so most people are more inclined to stay under the wing of the clan and enjoy the shade and welfare of the clan.

In fact, throughout history, there are often only a few people in the clan who have lofty ambitions and are eager to revitalize the clan, and the clan is also famous because of this small number of people, and more people actually choose obscurity, and this is why the parents of the larger the clan hope that their children will receive a better education to continue the glory of the clan, which is fundamentally born with clan consciousness is a rare thing. But in any case, the influence of the clan is indeed slowly and imperceptibly cultivated in this process of acquiescence.

● Absolute leadership and personal prestige of the best people in the clan

The Jia family in the dream of Red Mansions is a clan group centered on Jia's mother, because there is a need for people who are respected together, so they are tightly together, and the Yang family will not centrifuge between brothers because of the existence of Lao Taijun, Bai Jiaxuan in Bailuyuan, Fan Zhongyan in Fan's ancestral hall, they are the representatives of this clan, and their social status is relatively high, so that everyone can agree and obey, so as to solve the differences and contradictions in practical life, with their personal experience and status, so that both parties can get a more satisfactory result, not to the clan centrifugation。

Looking back on history, it is not difficult for us to see that the rise and fall of the clan is actually tied to this core figure, from the Qinghe Cui clan to the Langya royal family, from the Longxi Li clan to the Chenjun Xie clan, among these big clans, there are always one or two characters we are familiar with, and this is the center of their dominance.

Let's consider, then, what will happen if this center is destroyed? When you come forward to announce something, people will accuse you that you are not able to lead us on any basis, and this is the case day by day, and people are afraid of gossip and harm, and in the long run, the accumulated influence of the clan will not fall apart, and thus go to decline, because a group of people without leadership have no direction, which is tantamount to a plate of scattered sand and headless flies, which cannot set off any big waves, and cannot become any climate, so it will be a vicious circle, and the clan will be destroyed.

2. Why did the clan system come to the brink of collapse?

So back to the original question, why is the clan declining today?

First, Confucianism no longer dominates people's thoughts, the modern concept of pluralism, independence, fairness and equality is becoming more and more mature, and people no longer accept the old-fashioned tears of the times when blood is king, but pay more attention to human initiative and acquired struggle, and things that cannot be changed by people like blood are naturally abandoned, which is the collapse of the foundation of his rule.

Second, the current grass-roots management organization is set up in the township, the transportation is convenient, the policy implementation is high, the government no longer relies on the influence of the clan, no longer gives support, and even in a certain way will suppress the destabilizing factors in this place, which is the demise of his organizational foundation.

Third, the improvement of the level of productivity, so that people no longer rely on the clan can live a good life on their own, the clan is limited in geography, not to meet the needs of this era of population flow, so the individual gradually detached from the clan, become a separate individual, which in turn promotes the motivation of the individual to work hard for himself, forming a virtuous circle.

Fourth, the disappearance of the core figures, in ancient times, when you become a big official, you can become the patriarch of the ancestors, and now the career choices are more diverse, no one can evaluate which line has a high status or low status, and after the elite in the clan is more, this polycentric structure is far less stable than the original single-center structure in a short period of time, and even if there are elites, they are distributed in all directions, and the scope of the geographical clan can not play much of a practical management role, so the force declines.

In modern times, under the influence of Western thought and the progress of science and technology, China's previous development model is no longer suitable. So again, there was a change. The change at this time is a change that pursues fairness more.

In the earliest development of the Western Industrial Revolution, the issue of fairness was seriously challenged. The exploitation of the workers by the capitalists has become very serious. It was in this context that some utopian socialists, and later Marx, began to imagine the world of the future.

The reason for such an imagination is actually the constant dissatisfaction with the small community.

Because of the imagination of Marx and others, society has undergone drastic changes, and the world has begun to move forward in two ways: one is that capitalist society has readjusted their economic and political methods, so that they can enter the era of the great community again. Another way is to continue to explore and advance toward a stable community as China has entered the era of socialism.

In short, human society has developed from a small community to a large community, and the ultimate goal of human society is indeed to realize a large community for all mankind. This is a great ideal, and such an ideal can be realized one day.