A Study On The Ideological Trend Of Labor Is Sacred In The May Fourth Period

The “labor is sacred” refers to a popular ideological trend during the May Fourth period that worshipped labor,praised labor,and valued the role of labor groups in transforming Chinese society.The rise of the ideological trend of labor is sacred during the May Fourth Movement was due to both theoretical and practical reasons.On the theoretical level,the spread of anarchism labor concepts and Marxist labor theories in China has prompted the intellectual community to systematically think about China’s labor problems.However,the ideological trend of labor is sacred is not a direct transplant of Western labor discourse in China,the modern evolution of traditional Chinese labor concepts is also an essential and important condition for it.On a practical level,the huge gap between what should be and what should be is the direct reason for the rise of the ideological trend of labor is sacred.At that time,workers who were supposed to be in a "sacred position" in theory were in a state of immense sorrow in reality.Even the European Chinese workers who bring glory to China in defeating their country have a miserable life after returning home.Actually,the rise of the ideological trend of labor was also an inevitable requirement for China’s social transformation at that time.Previously,a series of social transformation movements that did not actively involve workers had either failed or experienced setbacks,which brought inspiration to people: it is necessary to attach importance to the working class and unleash their potential power,in order to improve their current situation and enhance their social status.Chinese intellectuals began to pay attention to labor and labor issues early.At the end of the Qing Dynasty and the beginning of the Republic of China,both progressive intellectuals and political parties issued comments from different perspectives and proposed vague proposals.At the same time,religious organizations dedicated to social service,such as the Christian Youth Association,have also provided certain care and assistance to the labor community.On the eve of the May Fourth Movement,Cai Yuanpei shouted the slogan of "labor is sacred" in his speech celebrating the victory of World War I.This slogan quickly received widespread social response and gradually became a powerful ideological trend.During the May Fourth Movement,the ideological and political factions involved in this ideological trend were mainly Anarchism,early Marxists,the Research Group intellectuals,and the Kuomintang intellectuals.Among them,the anarchism’s advocacy and admiration for labor doctrine played a great role in the rise and development of the ideological trend of labor is sacred.Liu Shipei and Wu Zhihui were early representatives of anarchism in China.They put forward their own labor concepts at the beginning of the propaganda of anarchism.Liu Shifu,the successor of anarchism,established the keynote of China’s anarchism labor concept during the May Fourth Movement by virtue of his unswerving belief in and consistent practice of labor.During the May Fourth Movement,the new generation of anarchism Huang Lingshuang and Zhu Qianzhi continued to regard workers as the main body to realize the ideal of anarchism,and regarded labor as a prerequisite for a communist society.While having their own characteristics,different anarchism also have some common trends among individuals.They all respect labor,sympathize with workers,and pursue an ideal society of absolute equality in which everyone works.Anarchism’s labor view is dreamy,but it reflects their beautiful ideal.Although communist intellectuals are not the pioneers of the sacred labor ideology,they are important promoters of the continuous development and rise of the ideology.During the May Fourth period,many intellectuals or early Marxists with communist tendencies accepted and applied Marxism,and conducted many reflections on China’s labor issues.They sympathized with the labor community,defined labor and labor issues,praised the labor class,and depicted an ideal labor state that was more focused on society,constructing a Marxist labor discourse system.The labor concept of communist intellectuals is not only an organic component of the sacred labor trend,but also a theoretical precursor for the labor movement of the working class in the 1920 s,which has had a lasting and important impact on modern China.In the late May Fourth period,there were three influential debates in the Chinese intellectual community regarding the solution path to labor issues.The first controversy was sparked by the recruitment of female workers by Housheng Spinning Factory,with the main participants including communist intellectuals,the Kuomintang members,industrialist Mu Ouchu,and other newspaper intellectuals.The debate revolved around specific events,with relatively weak political color.The latter two controversies mainly unfolded among intellectuals with partisan characteristics,and were no longer limited to specific individual events,but rose to the grand layout level of China’s future development direction.Among them,the theme of the debate between Marxist scholars and the Research Clique is the solution to the current labor problem in China.The focus of controversy between Marxists and anarchism is the specific organization mode of the future labor society,that is,whether to establish a political party or a dictatorship of the proletariat.The focus of several debates varies,but without exception,they all involve labor or labor issues.They demonstrate the multiple dimensions of labor issues.During the May Fourth period,although there were differences in specific viewpoints among the various intellectuals who advocated the sanctity of labor,they also had certain commonalities among themselves.Intellectuals from all walks of life are facing difficulties and regretting the hearts of the people,attempting to achieve social transformation and national reconstruction from the perspective of labor issues.These commonalities constitute the basic content of the labor sacred ideology and also endow it with historical significance in modern China.The trend of labor sanctity has promoted the reconstruction of contemporary values,accelerated the transformation of the direction of the New Culture Movement,and also promoted the deepening of the trend of women’s liberation.Therefore,the study of the ideological trend of labor is sacred not only enhances our understanding of the May Fourth Movement,but also provides an analytical perspective and ideological reference for solving some social problems in China today.