General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "The materialist view of history is the fundamental way for us communists to understand and grasp history. Marx and Engels regarded "historical science" as "a unique science", and they used the materialist view of history to illuminate the long and profound historical archives, so that historical research had scientific theoretical guidance and methodological basis, and criticized the idealistic view of history that had previously misled people's thinking and understanding, thus opening up a common road for historical research. The materialist view of history provides scientific theories and effective methods for people to form correct historical thinking and promote academic development, and is the cornerstone of accelerating the construction of the discipline system, academic system and discourse system of history with Chinese characteristics.
Human beings do not have a correct understanding of their own history from the very beginning. The establishment of the materialist view of history illuminated all the research that was groping in the dark, it swept away the fog of the idealistic view of history, and made the study of history a scientific undertaking. The materialist view of history has set up a towering monument in the history of human understanding, and whether or not to use the materialist view of history has become an important watershed in whether or not the scientific study of history can be studied, and it has also become a touchstone for whether to adhere to the Marxist position and viewpoint method in historical research.
More than a hundred years ago, in the process of disseminating the truth of Marxism, Li Dazhao applied the materialist view of history to the study of Chinese history, and promoted the transformation of Chinese historiography from traditional historiography to Marxist historical science. Under the guidance of the materialist view of history, Guo Moruo, Fan Wenlan, Zhai Bozan, Lü Zhenyu, Hou Wailu, Hu Sheng, and other historians have emerged in China's historical research, and have achieved pioneering results in the determination of China's general history system and the opening up of the field of modern Chinese history research, the nature of Modern Chinese Society, the origin of Chinese civilization, the periodization of Ancient Chinese history, the feudal economic form of China, the history of peasant wars, the mode of production in Asia, and the evaluation of historical figures. Not only that, the vast number of historical research workers have also integrated the achievements of scientific research into the great social revolution led by the Communist Party of China, and strive to keep the research results pace with the times and contribute to the development of the cause of the party and the people.
Research always goes to the problem. The problems in historical research have a historical existence and their solutions are epochal. Marx pointed out: "The problem is the slogan of the times, the most practical call for it to express its own mental state." "The object of historical study is the past, and it is oriented to the present and the future. To adhere to the materialist view of history, historical research workers must find the orientation of the times in historical research under the guidance of the materialist view of history, firmly establish the awareness of the times, and make historical research more socially responsible and historically mission-oriented. Standing at the forefront of the times, we will organically combine contemporary theories, knowledge, experiences, methods, trends and historical understanding activities, and then draw new understandings and new understandings of historical issues, and carry out new expressions and new writings. It is necessary to have a sense of problems, use Marxist standpoints and viewpoints to pinpoint problems and study problems, and not only be satisfied with "seeking truth and restoring" a series of major historical issues, but further pursue "seeking truth and applying them," and actively expand the depth and breadth of historical research on the basis of constantly revealing the law of historical development. From the perspective of depth, it is necessary to use the materialist view of history to deeply study the major issues in the origin and development of Chinese civilization, the birth of The early Chinese state, the formation and development of a unified multi-ethnic state, the modern transformation of Ancient Chinese society, the process of Chinese modernization and the new form of civilization, the world significance and contribution of the Chinese revolution, the historical development of the Chinese road and the development of the contemporary era, and so on; from the perspective of breadth, it is necessary to do a good job in comparative historical research under the guidance of the materialist concept of history, and scientifically compare Chinese history with the history of other countries and regions in the world. With the correct understanding and development of exchanges and mutual learning between Chinese and foreign civilizations, we will reveal the paths and laws of diversified development of human society.
Engels believed that "history is all we have." The study of history is the foundation of all social sciences. The vast number of historical research workers should deeply study and implement General Secretary Xi Jinping's important exposition on historical science, always adhere to the materialist view of history, explore the law of historical development, give full play to the role of knowing the past and learning from the present, and educating people with senior government, so as to make due contributions to promoting the development of China's historiography.
(The author Zhang Yanguo is the president of Nanchang Normal University)
People's Daily (13/11/2021)