Pages

Friday, April 29, 2022

How will the tussle between 3 ancient civilisations shape the future: Historian Wang Gungwu

The Straits Times:

WASHINGTON - If you repeat something often enough, more and more people will believe it because, in this age of social media with constantly competing narratives and diminishing interest in books, they do not have the capacity to think about it or find out what is really true, contends Professor Wang Gungwu.


The eminent historian and author of multiple books in English and Chinese was speaking to The Straits Times on competing narratives, and the challenge to the West of the rise of one of the three ancient civilisations to have survived till now - China.

"If you don't know the past, you are a victim of any story that comes along, and you don't know what to believe - and you just believe something that is said more often than others," warned Prof Wang.

"The past does not guarantee anything; but not to know it is far more dangerous than knowing it."

The 91-year-old is a professor at the National University of Singapore, as well as emeritus professor at the Australian National University.

He was speaking to ST as part of the new "Conversations on the Future" series, which starts on April 28.



On the geopolitical competition between the United States and China, Prof Wang underscored that China represented a civilisation rather than a country - with a particular fundamentally different view of the role and function of the state.

While some 80 per cent to 90 per cent of China today is modern - as in the West - its leadership had decided that liberal capitalism with its emphasis on individualism, and liberal democracy of the kind that the US stands for, did not suit China's society and "certainly did not suit the Communist Party, which had become the emperor, replacing the emperor".

"They like the capitalism part, but they want the capitalism to be in the traditional Chinese way, in the historical Chinese way, to be under the state," Prof Wang said.

Economic development and political responsibility could not be separated, and capitalists cannot be allowed to run the state.

"The state must ultimately be in control of economic development," he said.

This is a very serious challenge to what had been the dominant western discourse, Prof Wang noted.

"Because the dominant discourse was not satisfied with teaching neuroscience and technology and finance and money making," he said.

"They also want you to be like them in believing in individualism, human rights, liberal democracy and liberal capitalism. And if you don't believe in that, because it's a universal, as they have decided, universal and the most important part of... a modern civilisation... you are heading in the wrong direction."


Prof Wang added: "Of course, the two conclusions could be made: You will fail, or, in case you might succeed, we will make sure that you fail. And... I think what we're looking at today is actually something like that."

7 comments:

  1. The strength of the West is its tolerance of a wide diversity of opinions. If you look around, there are legions and legions of Western opinion makers who disagree with , and even heavily criticize the policies and actions of their government and establishment, without fear or favour. Many remain well-paid tenured professors and respected editors of journals.
    I contrast this with the Group Think and the narrow range of ALLOWED opinions in two major powers today - People's Republic of China and Russia.
    I see the People's Republic of China as a 74 Year Old Nation , ruled by 1 party. Not as a Civilisation. In fact,
    The People's Republic of China spent a majority of its 75 years repudiating the historical Chinese Civilisation,
    I am old enough to remember a time when Chinese Lunar New Year was not allowed to be publicly celebrated in the People's Republic of China.

    Ironically Wang GungWu is himself a major beneficiary of the Western standards of open inquiry and academic freedom. Studied secondary school at Anderson High School , Ipoh, University Malaya, then PhD at the University of London.

    If his path had instead been Beijing University, his capabillity would probably be little more than spouting officially :"allowed" slogans.

    Beijing and Other China universities today excel at Hard Sciences and Mathematics, which are ideologically neutral, but useless at open academic enquiry on the social sciences and poliics, because anyone deviating from "approved" range of opinions would run into big trouble.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Wakakakaka…

      "tolerance of a wide diversity of opinions"

      Wow!!!

      Mfer, u forget to add - as long as they r unable to challenge the fundamental principles of demoNcracy.

      China/Russia did, both in socio-political evolution & technical sciences! Thus leading to their fallouts with yr US idol!

      "The People's Republic of China spent a majority of its 75 years repudiating the historical Chinese Civilisation"

      This coming out from a known China basher!

      Well, a question - The USofA spent a majority of its 243 years redefining the America history San the native American Civilisations. What r they?

      At least the modern Chinese learn from MISTAKES, old & recent, to reinvigorate their culture, with TRUE intention of bootstrapping all the Chinese.

      Can yr anmokausai understandings of the American truth tell that to the soon extincted native Americans?

      Delete
  2. Wakakakaka…

    "They like the capitalism part, but they want the capitalism to be in the traditional Chinese way, in the historical Chinese way, to be under the state"

    The philosophical state of China exists far far longer than the sopo derivative of the modernistic capitalism!

    The Chinese live their long existential history, to be used as the guides, to prolong their BEING!

    How could a single modern theory of the multifaceted human behavioural science be their model in managing their BEING?

    Too old, too long incubating in the ivory tower have him losing touch with a culture of his birth BUT not his indoctrinated studies!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Monsterball

    I may or may not agree with your arguments but I give you credit for a reasoned and gentlemanly way you put your views across unlike some who are arrogant , rude and obnoxious and who think they are very superior.

    Better ignore such social retards.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Social retards telling the truth that those mfers who r UNWILLINGLY to spread foul lies by trying not to get into the mud pit!

      Typically high & mighty of that anmokausai self-indulgent of the nth order!

      Delete
  4. BBC News - Jixian Wang: The Chinese vlogger broadcasting the Ukraine war
    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-61239833
    A lone Chinese blogger who stayed on in Odesa, telling the truth about the war in Ukraine.

    The truth he us telling doesn't align with the People's Republic of China ALLOWED GroupThink storyline on the War... oops ....Special Miltary Operation in Ukraine , so his story is heavily blocked from People's Republic of China social media.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Have u ever heard of that 'hateful' China firewall? What it's for?

      Right - to blackout unwanted info filtering through into Chinese blogosphere!

      Wang Jixian blogs about life in Odessa in YouTube. Since YouTube has self-exiled from China blogosphere, obviously no many inland Chinese watch his videos. He can tell ANYTHING - that doesn't align with the People's Republic of China ALLOWED GroupThink storyline on the War - to entice his blog visit from outside China where his targeted audiences reside.

      In the similar way - just like all those gimmicky bloggers, doing ANYTHING, to earn a living through YouTube paid cheque!

      The known inland Chinese rages against him r just sectarian reaction of the citizenry of a nation towards someone they identified as traitor. Mfer, in the same manner as those Yankee Proud-boys & their neo-Nazis accomplishes reacting to groups opposing to their ideology!

      BTW, why don't u, BBC/CNN verify that Wang Jixian's blog had been suspended by YouTube before he becomes famous via his speaking out of his opposition to the Russian invasion. Ditto too, his conflicting claims of - been staying in Odessa for 4yrs & just moved into Odessa since March 2022.

      So, who's blocking who?

      Mfer, why don't u excite yr boring daily routine of searching for China-bashing news from western MSN by just looking at some other alternative sources?

      U might be highly dumfounded if u ever come across ≪Donbass - the document≫ by French film maker/Journalist Anne Laure Bonnel.

      U should consider itself very lucky if any of the western MSM detailed her findings!

      Or u have petrified neurons that only come alive with Yankee juices?

      Delete