Enlightenment Appeals In The Textbook Of The Late Qing And Early Republican China

After the Opium War,people in China began to view the world in a new vision.Some open-minded intellectuals realized that we were so poor and undeveloped compared with the highly-developed technology and material civilization in western countries.At the same time,the abuses of the feudal society were unveiled by western free ideas and democracy.Education,being a good plan to rescue the current political situation,has attracted exclusive attention since then and the modern Chinese education came into being.As the whole society placed hope on education,so did education on textbooks,and people with lofty ideals began to attach importance to textbooks in Late Qing and Early Republican China along with the development of new-fashioned schools.From the introduction of textbooks by mission schools and westernization schools to the self-compiled textbooks of Nanyang Public School,ChengChong Enlightening School and Wuxi 3^rd-class Public School,then the reinforcement of the government-compiled textbooks by the Commercial Press,Wenming Press and Chinese Press,textbooks met an explosion at that time.But current researches ignored the important roles textbooks had played in school teaching,in the carrying-out of modern courses,and in the course of Chinese society as the most popular reading books through the enlightenment of children.Thus,the value and historic contribution of textbooks in Late Qing and Early Republican China has been deeply buried.Textbooks are sharpened tools of idea enlightenment as well as knowledge transmission.The textbooks in Late Qing and Early Republican China,carried with their powerful radiometric force, presented a great show of enlightenment.They led young students stepped forward under rough social environment,at the same time, formed the basic strength of the Social Transformations of Discourse System under the general mobilization that intellectuals had presented to common people.Consequently,civilization was stepping forward confidentially,and China was stepping from tradition to a modern era.As silently-flowed streams moistened the land,so did the enlightenment of textbooks moisten China.To a certain degree,the Qing Dynasty collapsed in the gunfire of Xinhai Revolution also in the Study Revolution.We could easily find out the influence the students had received from the textbook enlightenment when they were at school, meanwhile the successful call of Xinhai Revolution and the rise of May fourth Movement both undoubtedly due to the contribution of widespread textbooks.This article adopts the combination of systems analysis and intensive study as a basic train of thought,and the union of time and problems as an arrangement of outline.Sticking to the principle of presenting genuine documents and historical materials,the research tries to put textbooks in the river of history and fully focuses on both the relationship of tradition and reform and that of inheritance and development,and finally seeks for the enlightenment appeals in the textbook of the Late Qing and Early Republican China.This article consists of two sections with eight chapters.The first section is "Development Section" including two chapters;the second section is "Enlightenment Section" including five chapters;The third section is "Conclusion Section" including one chapters.The research contents of each chapter are as the following:The first chapter,which includes three periods-"Period of Vocation"(1840-1896),"Period of Increase"(1897-1911)and "Period of Prosperity"(1912-1922),concentrates on the development of textbooks of the Late Qing and Early Republican China.Supported by plenty of detailed materials,the chapter respectively presents the introduction of western textbooks,the beginning of presses and government-compiled textbooks and the pomp of textbooks with new education objectives and ideas.The factors of textbook development of the Late Qing and Early Republican China,focusing on the factors of education development, factors of textbook compilers and factors of modern cultural context.The appearance of schools,the newly-designed courses,the publication of school regulations,the abolishment of civil service examination system and the reform of education objectives and school system all have been embodied in the factors of education development;Cai Yuanpei,who was the life and soul helped to influence the process of Chinese modern textbooks,along with the Chinese students in Japan,who helped to promote the development of Chinese modern textbooks,form the factors of textbook compilers;and the transition from the classical language to the vernacular style of writing,the wide spread of foreign textbooks and the standardization and spread of phonetic letters can be included in factors of modern cultural context.The second chapter studies the great influence on the development of textbooks of the Late Qing and Early Republican China.Pointing out the great merits of enlightenment for the society as well as individuals, this chapter illustrates the limited influence of other reading books,such as translations of western learning and newspaper publication,and the indispensable role textbook played in the period of the Late Qing and Early Republican China owing to their substantial publication, widespread benefited population and the lifelong influence.The third chapter announces the scientific intellect enlightenment of textbooks of the Late Qing and Early Republican China.Sprouting to blooming,the scientific intellect enlightenment of textbooks was carried out in "Gezhi" study and science.From the four bibliographic categories to the seven branches,textbooks set up the modern academic formulas through the establishment of learning branches and system,the institution of scientific methods and attitude,the wide spread of practical technology and invention,the standardization of scientific terms and the transformation of modern concept of place and time.It was textbooks that broke through the traditional thinking pattern,at the same time, effectively promoted the cognitive competence and innovation ability as well as the pursuit for scientific technology and the confidence in human intelligence.The fourth chapter concentrates on the democracy enlightenment of textbooks of the Late Qing and Early Republican China.Limited infiltration to wide spread,the democracy enlightenment of textbooks was gradually uncovered through concept and discourse system.From imperial power to republic,textbooks displayed an ideal spectacle of democracy through the publicity of modern politics and law system,the guidance of people's,self-governing the fulfillment of individual duties and the advocation of equality and freedom,and the advocation of social public affairs.Textbooks,on the one hand,shook the deep-rooted feudal autocracy,and on the other,led young students to be the main force of modern evolutionism of democracy during the course of the foundation of democracy discourse system.The fifth chapter deals with the modern ethical enlightenment of textbooks of the Late Qing and Early Republican China.Dormant to activated,the modern ethical enlightenment of textbooks were eagerly looking forward through the drawbacks of national character.From humane to human,textbooks built a brand-new value preference system through the obedience to public morality,the formation of autonomous personality,the inspiration of emotion and the ideal of transformation from individuals to the society.Textbooks remodeled the Confucian ethical theory centering in humane,and in a way rebuilt the national personality under the guidance of evolution.The sixth chapter handles the modern commodity economy enlightenment of textbooks of the Late Qing and Early Republican China. Calm to surging,the modern commodity economy enlightenment of textbooks was revealed through self-reliance and wealth pursuit.From marginalization to accentuation,textbooks was searching for a way out to prosperity through the emphasis on commerce,the wide spread of financial common sense,the introduction of enterprise policy,the guidance of marketing and the renovation of wealth notion.Challenging the theory of advocating justice but depreciating benefit,textbooks boldly popularized some necessary commercial notion and knowledge expertise.The seventh chapter talks about the modern life style enlightenment of textbooks of the Late Qing and Early Republican China.Gradual progress to phenomenal progress,the modern life style enlightenment of textbooks revealed the truth that health serves as the necessity of nation prosperity.From sick men to dominant species,textbooks put great emphasis on the significance of good health through the wide spread of modern hygiene knowledge,the abolishment of bad habits and the advocation of daily exercises.In a word,textbooks helped to establish a scientific habitual standard.The eighth chapter makes a conclusion,pointing out that the enlightenment of textbooks of the Late Qing and Early Republican China aimed to enter a new era,which is named as modern era.It was because of the enlightenment appeals in the textbook that the modern core value spouted out in China and affected China in a way never met before.The enlightenment of textbooks of the Late Qing and Early Republican China cast a lifelong influence on the whole society through the efforts of individuals.In other words,enlightenment served as a leader in the course of saving the nation from extinction,or in a way,put the course into practice.All in all,textbooks worked as a restraining factor in China in the process of stepping into modern era from tradition.