Shen Baozhen’s View Of The Western World From The Perspective Of Technology

In modern times, ancient China was enforced to be opened to the outside world by western countries with their powerful warship and artillery. Its thousand-year tributary system was smashed, when a series of treaties of national betrayal and humiliation were signed. Meanwhile, Chinese people’s illusion about the Celestial Empire was shattered. Then, people of insight began to realize the role of powerful weapons in resisting the disgrace. In an effort to cope with the situation which remained unchangeable in three thousand years, they learnt merits from the foreign to conquer the foreign countries. The Qing government also encouraged to learn from the western countries, whereas the Chinese shipbuilding sector with very little effect, had not entered the threshold of modern times. After a series of internal disputes, the government resumed its old ways and stagnation, deemed signed treaties as a guarantee of peace. No substantive changes occurred at that time. In the 30-year reign of Qing emperor Daoguang, the unprecedented Taiping Rebellion broke out. In the process of the Qing government’cooperation with the West to repress the uprise, some commanders of border-provinces had a more profound understanding of the tremendous force of western weapons in the war. The comeback of the second opium war put the Qing government further into a critical situation, so in a period of relative peace after the suppression of the Taiping Rebellion, the Westernization Movement from the central to the local was initiated in the pursuit of self-improvement and prosperity, which could be said to be learning from the Western countries. Zuo Zongtang then founded Fujian Ship-building Bureau in Mawei District, Fujian. In its inception, since Zuo was suddenly transferred to put down a rebellion in the northwest, he recommended Shen Baozhen, former governor of Jiangxi and renowned gentry in Fujian, to be the minister in charge of the ship-building bureau. From then on, the bureau was under construction in full swing. Unlike Li Hongzhang’s Jiangnan Manufacturing Bureau, the Fujian Ship-building Bureau engaged in the ship-building sector, made a significant contribution to the formation of China’s modern navy and coastal defense construction. Serving the modernized ship-building bureau, Shen came into contact with the most advanced western technologies and numerous western staff, which enabled him to have a more specific understanding of the West. As the minister, he was in full charge of the bureau, and entitled to explain his own views without the limitations and put forward his opinions in an attempt to ensure the smooth development of the ship-building industry, which laid the foundation for Fujian Ship-building Bureau and China’s modern shipbuilding industry. Shen Baozhen’s viewpoint of the West came into being and developed during his tenure in the ship-building bureau, which was also a time when Shen who received the traditional Confucian education, learnt the Western world, and then cognized it in practice. His thought had significant influence on the Chinese modern industry, coastal defence and education.The first part in the paper introduced the topic source, research significance, status and methods. As the background for the formation of Shen Baozhen’s view on the western countries, the second part briefed Chinese people’s knowledge of the world before the Opium War and some changes in their thinking after the Opium War. In terms of the conditions for why Shen’s views on the western countries developed, the third part depicted Shen’s early experiences, including family education and Lin Zexu’s and Lin Changyi’s influence on his early thoughts, Zuo Zongtang’s founding of Fuzhou Ship-building Bureau and selection of Shen Baozhen as well as Shen’s practices during his tenure in the bureau. The fourth part, as a key point of the paper, discussed Shen’s views on the west from four aspects including outlook on talents, westernization and traditional Celestial Empire. Moreover, the ending part reconsidered Shen Baozhen’s views on the west countries, and described how to learn Shen’s views and their four characteristics. In summary, Shen Baozhen was an influential person in the modernization of China and a key figure for a transition from the traditional times to the modern times, who studied the western civilization by advanced western technologies, and formed his own unique perspective on western countries in practice.