Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2015. xxiii, 370 pp. (Maps, illustrations.) US$39.99, paper. ISBN 978-1-107-64319-2.
This book offers an epic account of the past 120 years of China’s intellectuals, as they tackled “reform,” “revolution,” and “rejuvenation” (three R’s, or what Cheek calls ideological moments) and pursued the meaning of “the people,” “Chinese,” and “democracy” in search of China’s future. The three recurring ideological moments, the three puzzling concepts, and the instrumental role of intellectuals are the foci of the book. Cheek has successfully told the story of the intellectual in modern Chinese history, even if one may find it discouraging in the end: the swing between the three R’s has not ended, and the debate on the three concepts still continues after 120 years. But this makes the book a fascinating read for all those who are wondering where China has been, where it is now, and where it is going, especially for concerned students and scholars.
Discussing the various ideological moments and the ideas, worlds, and roles of China’s intellectuals, Cheek’s book is divided into six chapters: 1) reform (1895–1915); 2) revolution (1915–1935); 3) rejuvenation (1936–1956); 4) revolutionary revival (1957–1976); 5) reviving reform (1976–1995); and 6) rejuvenation (1996–2015). Now it seems that he has to add another chapter on “revolutionary revival,” since China appears to be continuing its swing between revolution (Mao), reform (Deng), rejuvenation (Jiang and Hu), and revolution again (Xi 2012 to now). Is it going to be followed by reform and rejuvenation in the future?
Another focus of the book is the evolving concepts of the people, Chinese, and democracy. It is interesting to note that from Liang Qichao’s time onwards, the term “people” gradually obtained a political aspect (46, 64, 105) so much so that in the Communist era, “class enemies” were not viewed as part of “the people.” Today, even if class struggle is no longer in fashion, those who do not support the Party-state are viewed as “hostile forces,” whether within or outside of China. They are deemed enemies of the people and penalized as such. The term “Chinese” has also undergone various changes. Zhang Binglin coined the term Zhonghua minzu to mean Han Chinese in 1907, and claimed that non-Han races could become Chinese only if they were culturally assimilated (tonghua) (49–50, 105). In the rejuvenation period of Jiang and Hu, and even in the Xi era, when talking about Chinese culture, Tibetan, Uyghur, and other minority cultures are often left out. Who is regarded as Chinese is still contested. The KMT was to develop democracy following the stages of military rule, provisional constitutional rule, and then constitutional rule (72), and democratic elections at all levels were finally implemented in Taiwan in the 1990s. But following Leninism, the CCP was practicing “democratic centralism” and “proletarian dictatorship” against the enemies of the people (107–111, 157). In the Xi era, the Party has increasingly consolidated its power in all walks of life and democracy has become even more of a dream for liberal intellectuals.
The role of intellectuals in China’s reform, revolution, and rejuvenation is the major theme of Cheek’s book. First, intellectuals are the people who have created and practiced the ideas of the people, Chinese, and democracy in their various forms. Second, they have all wanted to save China. Third, in their efforts to save China, they have always engaged Western thoughts no matter whether these are liberal or communist. Fourth, in their efforts to serve the state as revolutionary cadres, they made “a deal with the devil that came with severe constraints” and paid the price of engagement (117). Many, especially dissidents, paid the price with their lives (195). Fifth, one of those “severe constraints” is the propaganda state, whether it was the nationalist state under Chiang Kai-shek or the Communist state under Mao and his successors. Cheek calls this the “directed public sphere,” which is managed by the Propaganda Department of the CCP, where intellectual cadres are servants of the Party-state and where competing voices are removed or deeply attenuated (128–129, 322).
There are a couple of areas that I think future research should address. Cheek mentions intellectuals in the study of ethnic, religious, and gender issues but does not elaborate on them. But on each of these issues, there is a group of intellectuals who work to define the meaning of the people, Chinese, and democracy. Each group of intellectuals deserves a chapter or a paper of its own. Overseas Chinese (in the ethnic sense) intellectuals also need to be studied since they are actively engaged in defining these “enduring” ideas. All these intellectuals and activists are making an effort to influence what is happening in China. Even if the effect of their work is limited, their efforts are nonetheless important in China’s nation-building.
The book is almost flawless except for a few, very few places where I think improvements could be made. On page 109, when discussing the Three Principles of the People, “democracy” should replace the term “socialism” since that is what 民權, or people’s rights, means. On page 122, Cheek writes, “Landlords were shot…” Actually many, if not most of them, were beaten, stoned, or otherwise tortured to death. On pages 189 and 211, the nickname for intellectuals, the Stinking Ninth, does not derive from the Cultural Revolution. Rather, the saying comes from the so-called 九儒十丐, i.e., Confucians, who were ranked ninth, after officials, priests, doctors, craftsmen, and even prostitutes, but before beggars, during the Yuan dynasty. There are also several spelling errors. In footnote 5 on page 118, it should be Jiang Zhongzheng rather than Jiang Zhongzhen. On page 210, either Henan or Hebei should be used, not both. On page 270, first paragraph, the name should be Kang Xiaoguang, not Kang Shaoguang. Lastly, there are only a couple of places where Chinese characters are used, but more could have been used to make less familiar Chinese words or proper nouns more easily identifiable.
Cheek is one of the primary leaders in the study of intellectuals in China, and this book is the culmination of his various achievements in the field. It is a panoramic picture of China’s intellectuals over the course of over a century derived from a full understanding of the field of China studies. Cheek has absorbed and integrated the various perspectives and findings of those studies. Few books can surpass this one in its comprehensiveness and sharpness regarding the study of intellectuals and their roles in China’s development over the past 120 years.
Zhidong Hao
University of Macau, Macao, China