Reflections on accelerating the construction of China's independent knowledge system in the new era

　　On May 17, 2016, General Secretary Xi Jinping delivered an important speech at the Symposium on Philosophy and Social Sciences, profoundly revealing the significance, construction principles and specific paths of philosophy and social sciences with Chinese characteristics. The spirit of this speech has pointed out the direction for the development of philosophy and social sciences with Chinese characteristics in the new era, and has greatly promoted the development of philosophy and social sciences in mainland China. On the basis of this speech, General Secretary Xi Jinping further emphasized at the symposium on April 25, 2022 during his visit to Renmin University of Chinese that accelerating the construction of philosophy and social sciences with Chinese characteristics is, in the final analysis, the construction of China's independent knowledge system. I had the privilege of listening to the two important speeches delivered by the general secretary with my own ears, and I felt very cordial and encouraged, and at the same time I felt a great responsibility. Today, it is of great significance to review the spirit of these two important speeches and think about how to further promote the development of philosophy and social sciences with Chinese characteristics in the new era. This article focuses on how to accelerate the construction of China's independent knowledge system, especially the Marxist theoretical knowledge system.

　　The new era is urgently needed

　　Accelerate the construction of China's independent knowledge system

　　Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, important progress has been made in the development of philosophy and social sciences in the mainland, and one of the outstanding achievements is that the phenomena of Marxist aphasia, disappearance, and loss of voice have been fundamentally changed, the position of Marxism in the development of philosophy and social sciences has been strengthened, and the spiritual independence of philosophical and social science research has been further enhanced. Since General Secretary Xi Jinping put forward the important task of accelerating the construction of the discipline system, academic system and discourse system of philosophy and social sciences with Chinese characteristics at the Symposium on Philosophy and Social Sciences, important progress has been made in the construction of the "three systems" of philosophy and social sciences in mainland China. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out from a commanding position that accelerating the construction of philosophy and social sciences with Chinese characteristics is, in the final analysis, the construction of China's independent knowledge system. It is necessary to take China as a mirror and the times as a mirror, base ourselves on China's reality, solve China's problems, constantly promote the creative transformation and innovative development of China's excellent traditional culture, and constantly promote knowledge, theory, and method innovation, so that philosophy and social sciences with Chinese characteristics can truly stand tall among the world's academic forests.

　　Why is it said that the construction of philosophy and social sciences with Chinese characteristics is, in the final analysis, to construct China's independent knowledge system? First of all, it is necessary to understand the background of the times in which this thesis was put forward, as well as the connotation, important position and social function of China's independent knowledge system.

　　At present, the practical and theoretical development of Chinese-style modernization has raised a large number of new topics, science and technology are developing rapidly, the world is undergoing major changes unseen in a century, and the world has entered a new period of turbulence and change. We need to further accelerate the construction of philosophy and social sciences with Chinese characteristics, answer the questions of China, the world, the people, and the times, and promote knowledge, theory, and method innovation in the process of exploring and highlighting China's road, China's governance, and China's principles. Although we have made positive progress in constructing the discipline system, academic system and discourse system of philosophy and social sciences with Chinese characteristics, we still lack the basic interpretation of the "three systems", and we are not conscious and in-depth in the understanding and construction of China's independent knowledge system. In a certain sense, an important bottleneck in the development of philosophy and social sciences with Chinese characteristics lies in the lack of China's independent knowledge system as a whole, which is mainly manifested in the fact that our current knowledge system is not sufficiently independent and innovative in some fields or to a certain extent, and has not yet formed a completely independent, innovative and complete knowledge system, and then failed to achieve a major breakthrough in the construction of the "three systems". As a result, the ability of mainland philosophy and social sciences to respond, explain, and solve major theoretical and practical problems as a whole needs to be improved.

　　The primary meaning of China's independent knowledge system is China's independence. Autonomy is self-awareness, cognitive independence and self-consciousness, rather than blindly obeying or passively being subject to others or other knowledge systems. China's independent knowledge system is a knowledge system that is based on China, looks at China, takes root in China, adheres to China's problem-oriented, responds to and solves China's problems, and is recognized or accepted by the majority of Chinese scholars and people. Knowledge systems generally contain elements such as scientific understanding, beliefs, values, and methodology. As China's independent knowledge system, it should not only correctly reflect the laws of the development of nature, society and human thinking, and the development trend of China and the world, but also correctly reflect the development goals of national modernization, the needs of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation and the people's expectations for a better life.

　　The construction of China's independent knowledge system is the basis for the construction of the discipline system, academic system and discourse system of philosophy and social sciences with Chinese characteristics. The core content of the knowledge system is theory and thought, which form the basis of the entire philosophy and social science. The construction of the discipline system involves the division and organization of disciplines, etc., which must follow the internal laws of the knowledge system and obey the internal logic of theoretical content and thought. The construction of the academic system involves academic activities, academic evaluation and academic norms, etc., and must be subordinated to the internal laws, development requirements and social functions of the knowledge system. The construction of the discourse system involves the conceptual expression and dissemination of knowledge, and the theories or ideas in the knowledge system are the content of the discourse system, and the content is king. Only by taking China's independent knowledge system as a solid foundation and ideological and theoretical premise for the construction of the "three systems" can we achieve a major breakthrough in the construction of the "three systems".

　　To construct an independent knowledge system in contemporary China, we must adhere to the guidance of Marxism. The fundamental symbol of philosophy and social science with Chinese characteristics is to uphold the guiding position of Marxism, and similarly, to construct China's independent knowledge system, it is also necessary to consciously adhere to the Marxist world outlook and methodology. In constructing China's independent knowledge system, we must adhere to the guidance of contemporary Chinese Marxism, that is, Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, and fully absorb and embody the theoretical innovation achievements of our party. In a certain sense, Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era is the core idea that runs through contemporary China's independent knowledge system.

　　Strive to build China's independence

　　Marxist theoretical knowledge system

　　Marxism is not only the guiding ideology for the construction of philosophy and social sciences with Chinese characteristics, but also an important content of philosophy and social sciences with Chinese characteristics, and an important field and branch of China's independent knowledge system. In constructing China's independent Marxist theoretical knowledge system, we should pay attention to the following issues.

　　First of all, it is necessary to clarify the basic content and characteristics of the Marxist theoretical knowledge system.

　　Marxism is a scientific theoretical system and a scientific knowledge system. It contains four aspects of content or elements: first, Marxist textual literature, which includes both the works of Marxist classic writers and the research literature of Marxist successors; second, the historical process of the development of Marxist theory, especially the process of localization and sinicization of Marxism; The third is the basic theoretical system or basic principle system of Marxism, such as Marxist philosophy, political economy, scientific socialism, and the basic theories of Marxism in the fields of history, sociology, ethnology, literature, journalism, military science, and religious studies; Fourth, the scientific methodology system of Marxism, such as the basic methods of dialectical materialism and historical materialism, the methods of political economy, and the methods of social criticism. Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era is contemporary Chinese Marxism and Marxism in the 21st century, and naturally constitutes a particularly important content of contemporary China's independent Marxist theoretical knowledge system.

　　In addition to the scientific, practical, people-oriented, and innovative characteristics of Marxist theory, China's independent Marxist theoretical knowledge system should also have the characteristics of Chinese characteristics, theoretical self-confidence, and problem-orientation. This knowledge system should fully embody the innovative achievements of the Sinicization of Marxism and the theoretical self-confidence of socialism with Chinese characteristics.

　　Second, the following principles should be adhered to in constructing China's independent Marxist theoretical knowledge system. First, it is necessary to pay attention to the integrity of Marxist theory, and the content elements such as texts, history, principles, and methods cannot be separated. The Marxist theoretical knowledge system is a rigorous and complete scientific system. Its texts, histories, principles, and methods are intrinsically unified. At the same time, its realism or practicality determines its strong attention to reality and keeping pace with the times. These characteristics determine that we must treat the Marxist theoretical knowledge system as a whole, and avoid separating and antagonizing the study of texts and documents, the study of intellectual history, the study of basic theories, the study of methodology, and the study of practical problems.

　　Second, it is necessary to pay attention to highlighting the independence, self-confidence, and creativity of the Sinicization of Marxism, and to overcoming the blind worship and imitation of foreign Marxist theoretical research results. In constructing China's independent Marxist theoretical knowledge system, it is necessary to pay attention to reflecting the development achievements of Marxism in combination with China's specific reality and China's excellent traditional culture, and highlight the latest achievements in the Sinicization of Marxism. It is necessary to critically absorb and draw on the research results of foreign Marxism, avoid eating raw and eating foreign things, and not copy and copy foreign things, but persist in focusing on ourselves and constructing Chinese theory.

　　The third is to pay attention to the foundation of the Marxist theoretical knowledge system compared to the other "three systems", and we cannot talk about the construction of the Marxist discipline system, academic system and discourse system without the Marxist theoretical knowledge system. The uniqueness, innovation, and political or ideological nature of China's independent Marxist theoretical knowledge system determine the basic nature and direction of the discipline system, academic system, and discourse system of Marxist theory, that is, its particularity in discipline division, professional positioning, evaluation system, and conceptual system.

　　Fourth, we should pay attention to the law observance and value orientation in the construction of the Marxist theoretical knowledge system, that is, we should follow the law of the development of philosophy and social science, conform to the nature and requirements of Marxist theory, serve the needs of the party and the state and the needs of the people, and persist in being problem-oriented. The Marxist theoretical knowledge system was not born and developed out of the road of development of human civilization. As a scientific knowledge system, its construction should conform to the basic laws and norms of the development of philosophy and social sciences. Like other fields of philosophy and social sciences, China's independent Marxist theoretical knowledge system has specific social functions and serves the cause of socialism with Chinese characteristics.

　　Fifth, we should pay attention to inheriting the excellent traditional Chinese culture and absorbing the achievements of world civilization. On the one hand, China's independent Marxist theoretical knowledge system has historical inheritance, attaches importance to the combination of modernity and tradition, attaches importance to the inheritance and promotion of China's excellent traditional culture, and highlights the essence of Chinese culture and Chinese spirit. On the other hand, it is open-minded, adheres to the unity of national and cosmopolitan character, faces the world, and constantly absorbs and draws on all the achievements of human civilization, including all progressive ideas and positive values.

　　The construction of China's independent knowledge system, especially the construction of China's independent Marxist theoretical knowledge system, is of great significance and arduous task, and it requires continuous efforts to explore. In close connection with major issues such as Chinese-style modernization and the construction of the modern civilization of the Chinese nation, we should reflect the latest achievements of the party's innovative theories in a timely manner, fully arouse the enthusiasm of the vast number of philosophical and social science workers, accelerate the study of philosophy and social sciences with Chinese characteristics, and open up a new realm for the development of philosophy and social sciences with Chinese characteristics.

　　(The author is a researcher at the Institute of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, Renmin University of Chinese)

Source: "China Social Science Daily" May 17, 2024 Issue 2893 Author: Hao Lixin