Before and after the May 4th Movement, various social trends of thought flooded into China, showing a vivid situation in which a hundred schools of thought contended and different opinions were expressed, and socialism became a recognized and most popular new trend of thought. In addition to Marx's scientific socialism, anarchism, including anarchism, new village socialism, pan-labor, cooperation, Kilt socialism and many other socialist schools, which appeared and spread in the western world, all spread in China under the veil of socialism. Mutual aid theory is also a socialist school widely circulated in China during the May 4th Movement. At that time, advanced intellectuals in China, such as Li Dazhao, Chen Duxiu and He, were influenced by it to varying degrees. The reason why the theory of mutual assistance can have a wide influence is its profound social and historical reasons, including national conditions, cultural psychology and social psychology. With the failure of the work-study mutual aid group experiment, advanced intellectuals in China abandoned their illusions about utopian socialism, finally realized the transformation from radical democrats to Marxists, and established their belief in scientific socialism.
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Mutual aid theory is a socialist school widely circulated in China during the May 4th Movement, and it is one of the theoretical foundations of anarchism. Its founder is Russian Kropotkin (1842- 192 1). Krupotkin declared himself a proletarian anarchist. In his masterpiece "Mutual Assistance" (formerly known as "Mutual Assistance: An Evolutionary Factor"), he repeatedly stated that there is no cannibalism between animals of the same species, but only the trend of mutual assistance, each helping itself to resist the harsh environment. Mutual assistance is good for survival, but it can maintain great public welfare because of its lack of ability. Therefore, animals that can probably help each other thrive. ..... So mutual assistance among animals is also a common example of evolution. On this basis, Krupotkin asserts that Darwin's survival competition and natural selection are not the fundamental reasons for biological evolution, but mutual assistance is the real factor for all biological evolution. "Competition is not the law in both animal kingdom and human beings." On the contrary, it is a "natural tendency" not to compete and avoid competition. (Kropotkin: On Mutual Assistance, Commercial Press, 1963, pp. 76 and 77. Applying the evolutionary law of mutual assistance in the biological world to examine human society, Krupotkin believes that mutual assistance is not only the animal world, but also the universal law of the development of human society. Relying on the instinct of mutual assistance, human beings can establish a harmonious social life without the help of authority and coercion, and realize the "eternal" principles such as justice, equality and freedom and the capitalist society of "from each according to his ability, to each according to his needs" in the evolution of human mutual assistance. In essence, this theory confuses class boundaries, opposes class struggle, violent revolution and proletarian dictatorship, and advocates social improvement. Of course, it is undeniable that the theory of mutual assistance reveals the contradictions of capitalism to a certain extent and sharply criticizes the capitalist system, which has some reasonable elements. The theory of mutual assistance has influenced the advanced intellectuals in China in many ways. In this regard, we should conduct a comprehensive analysis.
First of all, advanced intellectuals in China regard "mutual assistance" as a means to transform society and create a new society. I hope to carry out social transformation in the evolution of mutual assistance, establish an ideal society of mutual love, mutual assistance, harmony and equality, and sincerely carry out various experiments for it.
Before and after the May 4th Movement, the call for exploring new ways to save the country and the people and transform the society was growing among progressive intellectuals. As the earliest Marxist in China, Li Dazhao was inevitably influenced by the theory of mutual assistance in the process of changing from a radical Democrat to a Marxist, and once regarded it as a new way to save the country and a strategy to manage the world. 19 19 In July, Li Dazhao wrote in the article "Class Competition and Mutual Assistance": "Human beings should be friendly and help each other, and may survive and evolve through mutual assistance; You can't survive by war, nor can you evolve by war. " (Selected Works of Li Dazhao, Volume 2, People's Publishing House, 1999), p. 335. While advocating the theory, Li Dazhao also actively participated in the experiment of utopian socialism. He is an enthusiastic supporter of the Beijing Work-study Mutual Aid Group. As one of the sponsors, Li Dazhao signed the Notice of Raising Funds for the Work-study Mutual Aid Group, calling on all circles to donate money for the work-study group, and he also generously contributed. (A Comprehensive Record of Li Dazhao's Historical Events, Peking University Publishing House, 1989), p. 4 15. )
Hui Daiying was also deeply influenced by the theory of mutual assistance in his early years, thinking that "it is better to advocate the way of mutual assistance than to advocate the way of survival." He regards mutual assistance as a way to transform society and sincerely says: "People with aspirations will help each other and be prepared for struggle. After graduation, ordinary students can still be as honest as they are today, and still support each other as much as they love their peers today. In another three to five years, there will soon be a practical ability in society, which may be the fundamental way to save mankind. " "I believe that as long as I practice the principles of freedom, equality, fraternity, labor and mutual assistance one by one, I will not force others, natural people will be moved and natural society will change." (Collected Works of Hui, vol. 1, People's Publishing House, 1984), pp. 68 and 109. With this sincere desire and ideal, I will actively carry out activities. 19 17 10 10 On October 8th, he and some progressive youths initiated the establishment of the Mutual Aid Society, which was the earliest and most influential progressive society in Wuhan before the May 4th Movement. Obviously, the establishment of mutual aid society was influenced by Kropotkin's theory of mutual aid. The reason why it was named mutual aid society was "taking the meaning of Kropotkin's new theory of evolution". 1920 In February, Yun founded Liqun Bookstore on the basis of the mutual aid society, where * * * worked and worked together. The nature and purpose of the book club, Yun said in his diary, is clear at a glance: "This is the first step to establish an independent cause. We are committed to profitable occasions, implement a part of * * * productism, and strive to establish an organization that can do almost everything according to its ability, and have the opportunity to try our best to help each other through work-study, and do our best to set up various beneficial undertakings for the society." (cloud diary,19191218 diary. )
Before Mao Zedong became a staunch Marxist, he was also deeply influenced by mutual aid theory and anarchism. In this regard, when talking with Si Nuo, he said frankly: "I have read some pamphlets about anarchism, which is very influenced. ..... At that time, I agreed with many anarchists. " (edgar snow: Red Star over China, Sanlian Bookstore, 1979, p. 128. ) 19 18 in June, Mao Zedong, together with Cai Hesen and Zhang Kundi, tried to build an ideal society of equality, mutual assistance and friendship. They traveled all over the towns at the foot of Yuelu Mountain, trying to find a place to try a new life. His ideal society is to integrate schools, families and society and build a new social life in which everyone is equal and helps each other. Cai Hesen very much agrees with Mao Zedong's idea. "The only beginning is the' Utopia' set by my brother." (Xinmin Society Literature Collection, Hunan People's Publishing House, 1979), p. 15. Later, I was busy organizing work-study programs in France, and "I didn't talk about anything."
Chen Duxiu showed no obvious interest in anarchism, but sometimes he showed a good impression. For example, in his blueprint for China's new society in June 19 19, "friendship and mutual assistance" advocated by anarchists was regarded as an important principle.
During this period, work-study mutual aid groups appeared all over the country, which was all the rage. This is the result of the widespread spread of the theory of mutual assistance, and it also shows that this anarchism is quite influential in the intellectual circles, especially among the vast number of young people. They launched a vigorous work-study mutual aid movement, trying to create a new life and a new society through peaceful and typical demonstrations. As Wang Guangqi, the founder of the mutual aid group, said: "The work-study mutual aid group is the fetus of the new society and the first step to realize our ideal ... If the work-study mutual aid group is really successful and gradually popularized, and our ideal of" from each according to his ability to get what he needs "is gradually realized, then this work-study mutual aid group movement can be called a" peaceful economic revolution ". (Societies in the May 4th Movement (Part II), Sanlian Bookstore, 1979, p. 369. )
Secondly, the advanced intellectuals in China regard "mutual assistance" as a means to transform the spirit, and put the idea of "mutual assistance" on the same position as class struggle, and regard it as a mutual supplement.
1965438+In July 2009, Li Dazhao published Class Competition and Mutual Assistance. This is an article that introduces both Marx's theory of class struggle and Krupotkin's theory of mutual assistance. In this article, Li Dazhao put forward the idea of "transforming both things and minds": "This last class competition is a means to transform social organizations. This principle of mutual assistance is the creed of transforming the human spirit. " (Selected Works of Li Dazhao, Volume 2, People's Publishing House, 1999), p. 337. Therefore, he advocated "the transformation of things and hearts, and the transformation of spirit and flesh." Through the dichotomy of matter and spirit, Li Dazhao reconciled Marx's theory of class struggle and Kropotkin's theory of mutual assistance. This is because Li Dazhao believes that in the transitional period from the "prehistoric" period of class struggle to the "real history" period of human beings, "to eliminate the evil nature of human beings in the past history, we must redouble our ethical influence and the movement of human nature, rather than relying solely on material changes. This is where Marxist theory should be saved. " (Collected Works of Li Dazhao, Volume 3, People's Publishing House, 1999, p. 35. )
Li Dazhao's thought of saving Marxism with humanitarianism reflects his complex mentality of reconciling various social thoughts at that time, and he can't distinguish the essence and boundaries of various socialism. At the same time, it also shows that Li Dazhao's thoughts in this period have obvious humanitarianism and moralism tendency.
19 19 In September, Li Dazhao published the article Youth Movement of China Youth. When talking about the ideal "young China people", he once again emphasized the material and spiritual transformation. It is believed that the ideal "young China people" are "young China people" who have been transformed in both material and spiritual aspects, and "young China people" who have the same spirit and body. In other words, the spiritual transformation movement and the material transformation movement should be carried out at the same time, such as the two wheels of a car and the wings of a bird, in order to achieve the ideal state of unity of spirit and body. As for how to carry out the spiritual reform movement, Li Dazhao put "mutual assistance" in a prominent position, emphasizing: "The spiritual reform movement is to reform the minds of modern decadent people in the spirit of humanitarianism and advocate the principles of" mutual assistance "and" fraternity "so that everyone can show his true colors to his compatriots." Li Dazhao attached so much importance to the spiritual transformation movement based on "mutual assistance" and regarded it as one of the important ways to transform the whole society, and improperly exaggerated the role of "mutual assistance" thought in spiritual transformation, from which we can see that it was deeply influenced by the theory of mutual assistance.
Thirdly, on the positive side, China's advanced intellectuals accepted the theory of mutual assistance, that is, refining the available ideas and endowing them with new ones as fighting weapons, which played a positive role at that time.
During the May 4th Movement, imperialist aggression and years of infighting among feudal warlords left the people in dire straits. China's advanced intellectuals regarded the idea of "mutual assistance" as a weapon against the prevailing social Darwinism at that time, and theoretically exposed and refuted the war fallacy they spread.
As early as 19 17, Li Dazhao hit the nail on the head and pointed out that all foreign military invasions were based on the idea of "survival of the fittest, the law of the jungle, and nature works". 19 19 On the first day of the lunar new year, he preached: "In the past, it was said that the survival of the fittest, the law of the jungle ... From now on, everyone knows that this is a big mistake." It should be noted that "the evolution of living things depends not on competition, but on mutual assistance." He also quoted Krupotkin's words: "All human beings and even animals have their right to exist, and the laws of society itself are formed in the spirit of cooperation and friendship", emphasizing that "insects, birds, livestock and even human beings have evolved through mutual assistance, not through war."
Obviously, when imperialists and feudal warlords vigorously advocate the social Darwinism of "the law of the jungle" and provide excuses for their foreign aggression and internal strife, it is of positive significance for China's advanced intellectuals to attack them with the theory of mutual assistance as their ideological weapon.
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The theory of mutual assistance has exerted a wide influence on advanced intellectuals in China and prevailed for a while, which has profound social and historical reasons. There are national conditions, cultural psychology and social psychology.
First of all, from the semi-feudal national conditions at that time.
Engels profoundly pointed out when analyzing utopian socialism: "Immature theory is suitable for immature capitalist production and immature class conditions." (Selected Works of Marx and Engels, Volume 3, People's Publishing House, 1972), p. 409. In China, a semi-feudal society, capitalism is underdeveloped, the working class and its struggle against the bourgeoisie have not been fully developed, and Marxism lacks fertile soil in China. Backward social economy, immature class relations and great differences between semi-colonial China and Europe, the hometown of Marxism, have caused great difficulties for advanced intellectuals in China to understand and master Marxism. In addition, the books they could read about Marxism at that time were very limited, and their understanding of Marxism was fragmentary and sporadic. China's advanced intellectuals are inevitably influenced by other socialist ideological trends when they are not well prepared in theory, have a low level of theory and can't tell what real socialism is.
Secondly, China's yearning for and pursuit of a harmonious society for thousands of years became the cultural and psychological factor for advanced intellectuals to initially accept the theory of mutual assistance during the May 4th Movement.
China's thought of great harmony has a long history. The Book of Rites depicts a beautiful world of great harmony for us. It has been the unremitting pursuit and yearning of the people of China for thousands of years to build a world of great harmony without exploitation, equality for all, mutual assistance and friendship. Until modern times, when the national crisis was deep, people with lofty ideals in China still closely combined saving the nation from extinction with the pursuit of a better society in the arduous course of exploring the road to saving the country and the people. Mutual aid theory exposes the greed of capital exploitation, condemns all kinds of disadvantages brought by private ownership, advocates abolishing private property and implementing * * * *, and depicts the bright future of a * * * capitalist society of "from each according to his ability to get what he needs". All of these are similar to China's ancient ideal of great harmony society and China people's pursuit of a better society. Because of this, once the theory of mutual assistance was introduced into China, it attracted the attention and preference of China intellectuals. Li Houlai recalled: "We have read books and periodicals about anarchism and utopian socialism, and we feel very fresh and beautiful about the bright future of socialism and capitalism described in the book, and the realm of equality and freedom in which no one exploits the people, no one oppresses them, everyone works, everyone studies, and we think this should be our goal." (Memoirs of the May 4th Movement (I), China Social Sciences Press, 1979, p. 108- 109. )
Third, the reformist tradition is also a social and psychological factor that cannot be ignored.
A survey of China's feudal historical tradition of more than a thousand years shows both the fearless spirit of peasant uprisings against violence and power and the social psychology of "mourning their misfortune and angering them". The latter is obviously broader and more persistent. Even for the advanced intellectuals in China who explored the road to saving the country and devoted themselves to transforming society, reformism was their first choice. At first, they were not inclined to revolution and class struggle. Yun Daiying once said frankly: "I am a timid person and I am very reluctant to see bloodshed." Therefore, for these intellectuals who have a strong desire to transform society and are afraid of fierce class struggle, the theory of mutual assistance provides them with the seemingly best choice. Mutual aid theory advocates the abolition of all power and exploitation, advocates mutual assistance, and realizes the ideal society of "from each according to his ability to get what he needs" through mutual assistance, which is naturally welcomed and accepted by advanced intellectuals.
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Although the theory of mutual aid was all the rage at that time, any unscientific theory, no matter how advocated and respected, could not escape the fate of failure in practice. Under the guidance of the mutual aid theory, the work-study mutual aid groups established one after another were only a flash in the pan, but they were forced to disband after only three months because they were divorced from real life, economic difficulties and distracted people. Other mutual aid experiments repeatedly hit a wall in practice and soon declared bankruptcy. The rapid bankruptcy of mutual aid theory experiment has exposed its defects. It is like a sobering agent, urging intellectuals who yearn for socialism to bravely and rationally take a crucial step-from utopian socialism to scientific socialism.
After summing up his own painful lessons, Yun concluded: "In such an unsatisfactory environment, it is absolutely impossible to achieve any ideal career in some fields. If we want to reform, we must reform all of them. We should fundamentally add effective attacks to the current unhealthy economic system. Otherwise, there is always no benefit. " (Cloud Complete Works, vol. 1, People's Publishing House, 1984), p. 329. Dong Zeng had such a memory of this change: "At that time, there was a radical youth group with utopian and semi-anarchist ideas and keen on the' new village movement'. ..... Their leader is a talented young man named Yun. "These' new farmers' don't believe in Marxism, but soon they began to discuss Marxism, and many people joined the * * * production party." (Before and after the First National Congress (Part II), People's Publishing House, 1980, p. 294. )
After a series of failed experiments on utopian socialism, Mao Zedong finally sighed: there is no hope for political improvement. In my opinion, the Russian revolution is a change that no matter how desperate, there is no better way to abandon than to adopt this horrible method. Mao Zedong also summarized the methods to solve social problems at that time as social policy, social democracy, intense * * productism (that is, Marxism-Leninism), moderate * * * productism (that is, Russell's fake * * * productism) and anarchism, and made a comparative analysis one by one, and clearly put forward the political proposition to solve the China issue. He pointed out: "Social policy is a policy to fill the gap, and there is no way. Social democracy regards parliament as a tool for transformation, but in fact, parliament's legislation will always protect the proletariat. Anarchism denies power, which may never be realized. * * * The moderate methods of productism, such as the extreme freedom advocated by Russell and the laissez-faire of capitalists, will never be possible. * * * The drastic method of productism, that is, the so-called land to the tiller, can be used to predict the effect, so it is best to adopt it. " (materials of Xinmin society, people's publishing house, 1980), p. 23. ) This analysis and identification clearly shows that Mao Zedong finally chose the "drastic method of productism", that is, scientific socialism.
Cai Hesen also wrote a letter to Mao Zedong in August 1920, in which he said, "I have made a comprehensive review of various theories recently, and feel that socialism is indeed the right way to transform the present world, and China can do nothing else." (Collected Works of Cai Hesen, People's Publishing House, 1980), p. 50. ) clearly put forward to use socialist principles and methods to transform China. He also repeatedly emphasized the dictatorship of the proletariat and established a * * * production party consistent with Soviet Russia.
Li Dazhao drew a clear line between utopian socialism and scientific socialism. He pointed out that modern socialism marked that the socialism of Marx and Engels entered a new era. Their previous socialism was utopian socialism; Their future socialism will be scientific socialism. 192 1 in March, Li Dazhao published the article "Innovation of Group Training", clearly proposing to organize an "ordinary workers' party" to lead the mass movement and seek the thorough reform of China. It shows that Li Dazhao has abandoned idealism and utopianism in his thoughts and become a real Marxist.
Chen Duxiu profoundly pointed out: Before an economic organization and production system of the whole society is overthrown, there is absolutely no room for an individual or a group to reform alone. He further pointed out that for various schools of socialism, "we should choose one school. If the school is not clear, it is only a simple trend and will tend to capitalism. " If you think that all factions are good and tolerant, such a person without fixed opinions and beliefs is not worthy of talking about anything. "(New Youth, Volume 9, No.3) From" inclusiveness "to" choosing a school ",it shows that Chen Duxiu ended his" simplification tendency ",clarified various socialist viewpoints and established his belief in scientific socialism.
The transformation of China's advanced intellectuals' ideological beliefs during the May 4th Movement deserves deep thought and profound analysis. It is true that various schools of socialism at that time, including the theory of mutual assistance, provided sufficient choices and comparisons for advanced intellectuals in China, and their limitations reflected the scientific nature of Marxism. China's advanced intellectuals, full of enterprising spirit, constantly revised their thoughts by comparing, screening and screening various thoughts and trends of thought, abandoned the wrong and utopian elements, made the most important choice in their lives, and realized the leap from utopia to science. Finally, I realized that only scientific socialism, that is, Marxism, is the only correct way to transform China.
I hope my answer is helpful to you.