Liberalist Yu Shicun: Why do I object to Intellectuals?
By Yu Shicun/Melissa Diao (Anti Blog)
Updated: 2005-11-17 08:46

The news about the establishment of Sinology College at Renmin University of China has been the focus of media for a while, and there are especially some disputes among the intellectual circle.

AEB: Liberalist Yu Shicun is the author of some bestsellers, including Supernormal Words. Here is his latest column on China News Weekly. [Anti Blog]

Despite all these attention and different voices, the Sinology College at Renmin University officially opened recently. On the opening ceremony, the president of the University, Ji Baocheng quoted a letter from the Taiwanese scholar, Nan Huaijin, saying: “Just give your smile to either hypercritical blame or unexpected praise; neither of them deserves much discussion”.

This is of course an expression much at ease. The academics have the right to search for aid either privately or publicly. They also enjoy the freedom to choose various studying fields, in which the authority of academic leaders may vary, but any outsider could hardly put on any influence. For instance, a university may start a teaching and research section for official theory of “Three Representatives”, another one may have a major of Deng Xiaoping’s theory etc. It is true that the public and media could either praise or criticize, but it is the choice of an academic body and none of their business.

If the similar stories happen too much, people may start to doubt on whether an independent community, in which the conservatism and radicalism believers, the one who insist everything should be westernized and who put the Chinese classics above anything else, could have a fair attitude (as fair as politics) towards their antagonists, really exists. They may disdain or belittle each other within the community; but they respect each other’s existence and firmly guard their rights in public. They take the common intellectual value and reputation as seriously as one’s life. Unfortunately, later on I found, a community like this does not exist in China.

For the reasons above, in many occasions, I am one of those who make criticism on intellectuals, or say, make self criticism. My expression being obscure or frank, but has not turned out to be of much use, while readers and netizens have had several discussions about it. Generally, people criticize me on being an intellectual and despising intellectuals. Being treated as an intellectual is nice, but it only makes me do not know whether to laugh or cry.

The fact is, it is not today that the problem of Chinese intellectuals come out, and to criticize intellectuals is not my invention. When I wrote the book Supernormal Words., I found the problem of intellectuals is so serious that it is even beyond common people’s imagination. Mr. Lei Haizong said: “Chinese intellectuals are good at keeping silence. The intellectuals in no other countries could ever surpass us in that.” When it comes to detail, Mr. Lei said that the behavior of intellectuals in the past turbulent ages were almost all harmful to the country. From the party uprising at the end of Eastern Han Dynasty, to the fights between new and old party in Song Dynasty, to the case of the Donglin party at the end of Ming Dynasty, “They banded together only for selfish purposes, despite serious outside threat or inside upheaval. They may or may not have pure motivations at first, but later on they all joined in a competition for rights or involved in disputes simply for personal feelings. They would rather save their face and insist their opinions and at the cost of the nation, and never give up their own benefits. What they talked about are high-sounding words which are neither subjectively frank nor objectively practical.” Yang Xianyi wrote himself elegiac couplet at his old age : “The smart kid does not necessarily turn out to be an excellent adult; the muddle headed middle age finally become a toothless and disgraceful old man.” The note after that was: “It is the elegiac couplet I wrote for myself. The intellectuals in the recent one hundred years transitional period of China are mostly like this. It is the fate of the age and there is nothing strange. Therefore Tao Qian has written: ‘Just drink the alcohol in the cup, if that is the way God made it up’ ”. Mr. Zhao Fusan, who settled overseas, said that if there is a word that could describe the mental development of the 20th century Chinese intellectuals, he could not think of a better one than heart brokenness.

Mou Zongsan made a speech at Taiwan’s East Sea University on May 22, 1980 on What have the intellectuals in mainland been thinking about for the recent 30 years.

The great scholar who wants to turn simple knowledge into intelligence said: “The old intellectuals have become idiots and kept silent on everything. Now they are rehabilitated, they still don’t have the guts or ability to say anything. They do not think on their own feet, not even at home after closing the door. It is not only because they are repressed, it is that they don’t have the ability. If there is no shakiness in the society, they would have to follow the trace of the May 4th. The result is that problems could not be solved, and the intellectuals won’t wake up at last. Instead, they are still puzzled by the specious communism ideal.” Many people would think that Mou Zongsan has no basis to make this remark because he did not live in the mainland and he did not know well the situation here. As a matter of fact, his comments makes no difference from the self examination of mainland intellectuals. There were Pasternak, Solzhenitsyn, and Sakharov in the Stalinism dominated Soviet Union.

In Taiwan, where the mainstream is Three Principles of the People, there came out Hushi’s liberalism, Lei Zhen and Yin Haiguang’s liberalism, and intellectuals like Li Ao, Bo Yang and Long Yingtai. They have all influenced an age and a society. How can intellectuals despise themselves? “We must have great expectations, because the burden is heavy and there is a long way to go.”

I can only force a smile when hearing people criticizing my thought and logic. The intellectuals are not the only sufferers if they don’t have respect, honor and self recognition towards themselves. If intellectuals don’t have glorious dreams and sense of responsibility, their remarks could only be treated as editorials at most. “speak out rather than no speak out; it is futile to speak out; speak out even if it is futile” , most of the time they keep silent.

“They forget what is right at the sight of profit and have to sacrifice themselves when major events happen”. There is no effective criticism among intellectuals, not to mention effective criticism to the society. The intellectuals lack the sense of self discipline and making contribution to the society. This has lead the intellectuals either become followers of cynicism or servants to merchants and officials.

The modernization of Chinese intellectual, therefore, is one of the key elements in the process of Chinese modernization. If this failed, the intellectuals, with themselves being humiliated and hurt, will continue to lead a parasitic life which is harmful to the society. The famous “good student of chairman Mao” , general secretary of Shanghai municipal government before the Cultural Revolution, Mr. Ke Qingshi, often quoted from Mao’s speech: “The Chinese intellectuals could be generalized with two words: lazy and cheap. They are lazy in that they often feel proud without self examination. They are so cheap that they would take themselves great if they have not been beaten for three days.” Today’s situation reform and opening up also has something to do with this. Materials show that the second generation of party leaders had had much expectation on intellectuals, and they specially held a meeting to discuss the importance of theory. But after the meeting, Deng said clearly that he was disappointed with the theoretical circle. Deng and his peers had no choice but to do things practically, which later became a theory called “Deng Xiao Ping Theory”. The two most important sprites of the age in modern China are “Mao Ze Dong Thought” and “Deng Xiao Ping Theory”, both of which are works of politicians. Intellectuals did not make equal contribution. The fact, I think, is more powerful that mine and other intellectuals’ criticism on the intellectual world.

I would like to share this with friends in the intellectual circle, as a lesson and encouragement.