| In June 1919, under the influence of the May 4th Movement, the Bourgeois Revolutionary Party members, with Sun Yat-sen as the representative, reflected on the defeat of the Revolution of 1911, the Chinese bourgeois democratic revolution which overthrew the Qing Dynasty, to realize that the modernization of people was the prerequisite for the political and social revolution. They actively threw themselves into the ever-ascending New Culture Movement, and started three publications: Weekly Review (Shanghai, Xingqi Pinglun), the supplement of Republic Daily (Minguo Ribao) consciousness (Juewu), and building (Jianshe), all of which helped contribute to the. surge of the New Culture Movement.The founders of Weekly Review (Shanghai) include Tai Chi-tao, Shen Xuanlu and Sun Daisan, and its copywriters include Tai Chi-tao, Shen Xuanlu and Li Hanjun. The celebrities in the New Culture Movement also made some contributions to Weekly Review (Shanghai), including Chen Tu-hsiu, Hu Shi, Li Da Zhao, Luo Jialun, Jiang Menglin. And Zhu zhixin, Hu Hanmin, Liao Zhongkai, etc. who later turned out to be prominent personages of the Kuomintang (KMT) also published some articles on this Journal.The peak circulation figure of Weekly Review (Shanghai, Xingqi Pinglun) was 30,000, which, together with another equally famous journal Weekly Review (Peking, Meizhou Pinglun), was prized as "two brightest stars among the press". Therefore, to study the history of the CPC and the contemporary Chinese history, it will be of great significance to inquire into the relationship between this journal and the trend of thought of Social Reconstruction in the May 4th Movement era.One feature of Weekly Review (Shanghai) is its constant, almost weekly focus on labor issues, according to which, the articles can be divided into three categories:introducing the worldwide labor movements; investigating Chinese labor conditions; finding solutions to Chinese labor problems.Weekly Review (Shanghai) had once opened up a column Women's Liberation, a hot topic in the May 4th Movement era, which attracted many writers. The issues about the topic covered many aspects:who is the subject of women's liberation; the relationship between women's liberation and men's liberation; women's liberation or women's sanctification; the relationship between women's liberation and equality in education, economic independence, and reform of the family structure, etc.Weekly Review (Shanghai), once an important tool to promote Marxism, introduced to Chinese notable persons in the history of international communist movement, such as, Karl Marx, Friedrich Engels and Wilhelm Liebknecht. And it also expounded Marxism and came up with the idea of practicing Marxism with regard to a country's specific situation. Correspondingly, the Russian situation after the October Revolution was given high attention by Weekly Review (Shanghai).Since Weekly Review (Shanghai) was a journal started by people who later became the members of the KMT, it held in esteem Sun Yat-sen, one of the founders of the KMT, and his Three People's Principles, in promoting which, Politics For All and Direct Democracy were highlighted to explore the way to develop industry and to realize the Principles of People's Livelihood.Weekly Review (Shanghai) paid close attention to theories prevailing in the May 4th Movement era, such as, Mutual Aid Theory and New-ruralism, and showed its support to work-study mutual aid team initiated in some regions including Peking, which was also given cause analysis after its failure.In conclusion, Weekly Review (Shanghai) was an advanced journal in step with the New Culture Movement in the May 4th Movement era. It actively promoted new culture and new thought, discussed the China's prospect and future, and explored the way to save the country and the people. Even though some of its articles, viewed from contemporary perspectives, were not flawless in one way or another because of the times limitation, its historical progressiveness should never be overshadowed. |
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