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The Role of China Traditional Culture in Modern Society

foreword

On the 80th anniversary of the Department of Sociology of Fudan University, the importance of studying "Shanghai School" was put forward, and practical requirements were put forward for the students of sociology department, because it is precisely Shanghai that is in a focus position in the process of China's globalization and transformation from the past to the future, and it is quite valuable to study Shanghai. This paper is the assignment of the course of globalization cooperation, and the relatively concentrated discussion is aimed at the function and significance of China's traditional thought in the process of globalization. I will discuss specific issues with Shanghai as the background.

main body

According to a recent news, hurdler Liu Xiang and basketball star Yao Ming were awarded the honorary titles of Shanghai image ambassadors on the grounds that Liu Xiang symbolizes the "speed" of Shanghai's development and Yao Ming symbolizes the "height" of Shanghai's city image. There is no doubt about the achievements of these two outstanding athletes, but they are linked to the image of "high speed" and "high height" given to Shanghai. I think "speed" here refers to the process of modernization and globalization. Undoubtedly, the speed of Shanghai's modernization process has indeed made overseas scholars lament that "no city can tear down old communities as smoothly as Shanghai". The number of buildings above 0/8th floor in Shanghai/KLOC has exceeded the total number of buildings above 0/8th floor in Japan/KLOC. But does Shanghai face some problems in the process of globalization at this height and speed?

Here we can only get a glimpse of the whole leopard, and talk about the "speed" and "height" of Shanghai architecture. One school of urban sociology believes that modern urban architecture should be a "container for carrying people", and the basic idea of architectural design is to outline the most effective space with as simple lines as possible. Buildings in modern cities, especially those after the 1980s, can be seen to have inherited this style, such as skyscrapers, gymnasiums, office buildings, hospitals, schools and so on. It was in this era that Shanghai developed rapidly, so these huge "containers" accompanied by modernization mushroomed on the patios of grottoes and the ruins of tiger skylights. Miles of narrow intestines and ambiguous turns dissipated in the widened road, and the Parthenocissus tricuspidata on the old house could not snuggle up in front of the cold but polished French window on the big facade. Suddenly one day, we were in a commercial office building in Lujiazui, feeling that we didn't know where we were born. If we hide the people walking around, it is difficult to tell whether we are in new york, Tokyo, Beijing or Shanghai from the picture. Looking at the Bund on the other side of Huangpu River seems like a lifetime ago.

People not only live in a space, but also live in a kind of memory, which is the memory of traditional culture precipitated over time, and architecture is precisely the memory of the city, solemn churches, villas with different customs and quaint houses. These buildings with different personalities are alive because they are related to people and surrounded by fireworks. In the process of urban modernization, blindly pursuing the speed and scale of "international standardization" construction is like an eraser to quickly erase the symbols of memory.

Here I question what is the "international standardization" of cities.

If it refers to building a city into a certain standard model, such as high-rise buildings, three-dimensional traffic and people in uniform from all walks of life, then it has no geographical restrictions. It can be on an island in Asia, Europe or Africa, and it can rise rapidly in any corner of the world as long as it is promoted by a "stamp". An international standardized city symbolizing the speed of modernization, like a global chain McDonald's restaurant, is full of French fries and chips. However, it is the same as the mentality of diners. People are always willing to try different flavors of dishes and patronize different styles of restaurants, but they are not always willing to fill their stomachs at McDonald's. If all cities converge on a pattern and hide their cultural background, it will be boring to wander between cities in various countries.

In the process of globalization, cities are facing such a crisis. When the original local culture was easily erased, it was branded as a unified so-called "standardization" to show the strength and efficiency of globalization, just like putting an antique in an assembly line factory, when it was realized that it was not worth the loss, it became a fake antique, and the cultural traces and memory symbols contained in the original objects no longer existed, and the city became a container without foundation that lost its memory. When we saw the returnees returning to their hometown in Shanghai, we didn't recognize them, and we were surprised at the great changes in the city. However, only when we see in our childhood memories that people have gone to the old house in broken walls, do we burst into tears? Should we be extremely proud of urban construction or a little sorry?

Having said that, I seem to have been paying attention to the problems of urban architecture, but I only see the big ones from the small ones-globalization does not mean total westernization, although cooperation and exchanges with the West are very important in the process of globalization; Western standards are not "international standards" that can be applied to any piece of land, although urban construction and development are under such pressure. The unified model in the process of globalization does not have a good cultural foundation in China, but once the local culture is completely destroyed, it is like a person suffering from amnesia and forgetting his distinctive personality, lifestyle and thinking habits. Drawing a picture on a blank sheet of paper may be much easier to some extent than making the finishing point. People with amnesia can easily converge to other people's lifestyles and integrate into new rules of the game. However, because this brand-new game rule is formulated by others, in future games, amnesia patients can't refute the request to change the status quo with the original reasons, but will be at a passive disadvantage. Being led by the nose means that he has lost his personality, and a person without personality can certainly not attract the attention and respect of others.

So, what does China in transition rely on to cope with the pressure brought by globalization? That is the traditional culture of China and the national spirit that runs through it, and it is the fulcrum of the Chinese nation's game in the world. There are transcendental ideology and secular ideology in national ideology. The more developed and powerful a nation is, the more it will emphasize its metaphysical transcendental ideology. Therefore, in the first global activity not long ago, Confucius was emphasized and affirmed as a symbol of traditional Confucian culture in China. China people know very well that China's attraction and charm to the West will always be the cultural connotation that has been deposited for 5,000 years. Just like foreigners who travel to Beijing, China, they will definitely visit the Great Wall and the Forbidden City, which will not have much impact on the Asian Games Village in Beijing. The significance of China's traditional culture to modern society lies in preserving the local national individuality, and will not get lost in the convergent format of international standard chemical plants.

At the same time, individuals living in modern society have a sense of national cultural identity because of traditional culture, and even this sense of identity transcends national boundaries. From the perspective of global worship, overseas Chinese spontaneously affirm their cultural roots and consolidate and carry them forward through ceremonies. Here I have an association that the function of China traditional culture and Durkheim's social function of looking at religion have something in common. Durkheim believed that individuals initially joined the collective life through religious ceremonies, which contributed to the integration of groups and was a means for the society to consolidate and affirm itself. At the same time, religion maintains and promotes the traditional inheritance of a group, which is crucial to a group's unique moral concept to some extent. The connection between present and past ceremonies is the connection between individuals and groups, and the connection between tradition and today. The genius of Durkheim is that he put forward the social integration function of religion as a link. Compared with China's traditional culture, it may be a pluralistic system after the integration of Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism and modern Marxism, but almost everyone in China can tell whether something has traces of the traditional cultural symbol China. Similarly, China's traditional culture will also have religious social functions, such as the connection between individuals and groups, the self-identity of individuals in the collective, and the inheritance of traditions. I think it is of great practical significance to preserve and carry forward the traditional culture of China under the background of promoting a harmonious society.

To sum up, I have two main views on the role of China's traditional culture in modern society: First, under the pressure of global standardization, China's traditional culture is the soul of maintaining individuality and vitality in modern China society; Second, the integration of China traditional culture to modern society.

The history of the development and formation of China's traditional culture is also the history of the integration of social culture from division to supremacy. Therefore, when Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism are integrated into one furnace and Neo-Confucianism dominates the whole country, it is easy to be regarded by later generations as the victory of Confucianism in cultural integration and the final completion of traditional cultural integration; When the spread of western culture and the development of modernization process were blocked in China since the late Qing Dynasty, most radical thinkers pinned their strong desire for modernization on the excessive integration of traditional culture, the pain of Confucian cultural autocracy and the eager call for multiculturalism. However, some cautious scholars deliberately emphasize Confucianism.

First, the internal relationship between modern life and traditional culture

Regarding the internal relationship between modern life and traditional culture, borrowing a sentence from American cultural sociologist E Hills can explain the problem very well. He said: "Even if we admit that every generation has to modify the beliefs and behavior patterns handed down by their predecessors, we will inevitably find that a large number of beliefs have been supported in the past and are still supported now, and many behavior patterns have been pursued in the past and are still being pursued now. In addition, these beliefs and patterns coexist with recent paradigms. " [1] This short sentence contains four meanings: First, traditional culture and modern life have been "misplaced", and traditional culture can no longer fully adapt to modern life; Second, traditional culture has great stability, so there are still some traditional cultural factors in modern life; Third, although modern life still inherits some contents of traditional culture, this inheritance is not a fixed copy, but is accepted and developed after certain modifications; Fourthly, modern life is creating a new culture. This may be used to express the dialectical relationship of dislocation-inheritance-development-richness between modern life and traditional culture.

(A) the dislocation between traditional culture and modern life

Modern life is a way of life different from traditional life. As a complete cultural system, traditional culture cannot fully meet the needs of modern life. This is because the traditional culture itself and the times are constantly developing. From its own point of view, traditional culture has a dual nature, both positive and backward; As far as the factors of different times in its development are concerned, due to the contrast of modern times, traditional culture not only adapts to modern life, but also does not adapt to or even block modern life. This has led to the dislocation of traditional culture and modern life.

(B) the inheritance of traditional culture in modern life

Although China's traditional culture experienced setbacks, even the May 4th New Culture Movement and the "Cultural Revolution", it survived. There are profound reasons for this. Judging from the essential attributes of traditional culture, traditional culture has its times and depends on certain historical conditions, but besides the factors of the times, it also contains contents of universal significance. This part of the content can be inherited by modern society. For example, the cultural characteristics such as mutual love and mutual assistance between people, attaching importance to family, honesty and credit, justice, courage and patriotism are still modern people's life beliefs. Secondly, for a nation, traditional culture is not dispensable, it is the cultural basis and historical condition of modern life. The modern life of any nation cannot be built on nothingness, but must be built on the criticized tradition. Marx profoundly pointed out: "People create their own history, but they don't create history at will, but they build and inherit it from the past under the conditions of direct encounter." [2]

(C) the development of modern life to traditional culture

The inheritance of traditional culture in modern life is not passed on to the next generation intact, but a selective, creative and conscious cultural development process. Choice means that modern people choose the essence of modern value to inherit and discard the dross that is not suitable for modern life after scientific and meticulous analysis of traditional culture. Creativity means reinterpreting the essence of traditional culture, endowing it with new connotations and forms, and making it more suitable for modern life. Consciousness means that modern people, as the subject of cultural creation and choice, should have subjective consciousness, independent consciousness, cultural consciousness and reflective consciousness. And actively and independently accept and absorb traditional culture, making it their own. In this way, the tradition inherited by modern people has some characteristics different from the past, with new forms of expression and stipulation, which has become a cultural tradition presented by modern life and a traditional culture that has been integrated into modern life and passed down.

(D) the enrichment of modern life to traditional culture

Modern life is also creating new traditional culture. Modern people's life is by no means a simple copy of the existing tradition, on the contrary, it is a creation pointing to the future. In modern life, we create new things that are not in our tradition according to the changed situation, and those things with genetic activity will be handed down and become new traditions, thus enriching the traditional content. Posted in China Paper Download Center.