Between Modernity and Nationality: The Idea of Liberal Nationalism in Modern China

Title

Between Modernity and Nationality: The Idea of Liberal Nationalism in Modern China

Author

Ji-Lin XU

Page

207-249

DOI

Abstract

In modern Chinese intellectual history, there was a clear strand of thought, from Liang Qichao to Zhang Junmai, which was intended to reconcile nationalism with liberalism. What these intellectuals tried to achieve is combining the legal-political community in a democracy with cultural-lingual one in the nation. Both Liang Qichao and Zhang Junmai valued highly individual autonomy but at the same time gave emphasis on individuals’ sense of belonging based on national culture. They were liberals and nationalists too. What they had pursued was such a nation-state community that is based upon individual liberty, includes democratic politics and endorses the national cultural identity. Nevertheless, the kind of liberal nationalism that Liang and Zhang represented was also characterized by the Chinese Confucianism, which was very much reflected in their understanding of the relationship among the individual, community and the state, of public virtues and private morality, and also in their elitist attitude. This idea could be seen as a modern Confucian type of liberal nationalism.

Keyword

nationalism, liberalism, liberal nationalism, Liang Qichao, Zhang Junmai

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