To tell the world stories of China is to inform the world about China in a comprehensive way, as well as to provide ideological resources for global economic and social development.
In 2013, President Xi Jinping put forward for the first time the vision of creating a “community of shared future for mankind”. Over the past four years, this vision has gained wide global acceptance. Not long ago, forging a community of shared future for mankind became a UN Security Council resolution for the first time. How could it produce such a significant impact? On the one hand, oriental wisdom points to a new road of development in place of the law of jungle; one the other, it lies in the persistent efforts that President Xi and other Chinese leaders have made in promoting stories of China.
Chinese concepts, wisdom and propositions reflect how the Chinese people think about the international order and the future of mankind, which helps to bring about a change in the global governance system. However, there exist misunderstandings about China. Most often, China is described as “aggressive”. To let the world know about the connection between the road China takes to achieve modernization and creation of the community of shared future for mankind, we must tell the world stories of China very well. On the one hand, it is to let the world know about China from all angles and the road China takes in its effort to build a modern country; on the other, it is to provide ideological resources for global economic and social development. Therefore, we need to tell stories of China with world significance very well.
In a way, stories of China are a public asset belonging to the world. The world significance of Chinese stories is that they espouse values such as “justice is supreme” and “each one of us can define beauty in our own way”. It is the very thing we need in creating a community of shared future for mankind. “A public spirit will rule all under the sky when the great way prevails” is a value prioritizing justice instead of self interest. It is fundamentally different from the “interest first” value of some western countries. “Delicious soup is made by combining different ingredients”. China respects cultural differences and attaches great importance to cultural exchanges. We hold that cultural differences should not become the root of world conflicts. This is obviously different from the “Clash of Civilizations” prevailing in the western world.
To tell stories of China very well, we need an innovative discourse system and to build a bridge of communication between China and the rest of the world in a wider context, making stories of China that are persuasive and emotionally appealing. For social scientists, there is much to explore in the massive system and profound connotation of “China”. As there’s no academic system that can face up to China’s reality, answer questions about China, and summarize our experience in self-development, we are either confined to Chinese tradition and merely address ourselves on the world arena, or we apply Chinese data and material mechanically to prove western theories and viewpoints. However, we cannot tell stories of China within the framework of western theories. Instead, we should try to let the world understand stories of China by crossing cultural boundaries. To construct the discourse system of philosophy and social science, one of the most important tasks is to make theoretical preparations for telling stories of China in a context that can bridge a variety of cultures.
To tell the world stories of China, we need to cultivate more talents good at doing this job. In addition, we need to improve our ability in conducting profound dialogues in different contexts all around the world. This requires story tellers to have a deep understanding of Chinese culture and good ability in choosing the right themes from the coordinate system of Chinese and western culture, to link history and the present and clear misunderstandings between China and western countries. To this end, we need to motivate excellent philosophers and social scientists to participate in this undertaking, rather than rely solely on a particular discipline or a few think tanks. We need to do a good job in channel and carrier design, content and topic expansion, and form update.
As a charismatic oriental country with a long history, enabling civilization and culture on par with economic power is not only the road we must take to raise China’s international standing, but an indispensable way for China to go global. To tell stories of China that are of world significance, China will surely make greater contribution to world governance.
(The author is the First Vice President of Shanghai Academy and a senior research fellow)
