Editorial
In Search of a “Cultural Rejuvenation”
It has become urgent to put cultural development on the right track.
On October 18, the Politburo released a document that declared its aim to “deepen the institutional reform in the cultural field to promote cultural development.” Although the details of the document are yet to be released, it is clear that the issue of cultural development has been placed high on the agenda of China’s top-level leadership.
With a history that goes back several millennia, China has made an undeniable contribution to the world in terms of culture and education. While the Chinese people take pride in these achievements, it has been a disappointment that cultural development in recent years has been stagnant, if not in regression.
Over the past 30 years, China has achieved miraculous economic growth and greatly raised the living standards of its population. However, this rise in material wealth has not brought about peace and order, but anxiety and confusion. One major reason is the sluggish development of the cultural industry; for too long, the government has focused on economic growth and ignored the promotion of culture. Government departments that show an interest in promoting creativity usually do so for economic reasons. More often, authorities choose to outright disregard the promotion of cultural development in order to chase after economic growth; architecture of significant cultural and historical value is often demolished to make way for highly profitable real estate developments.
The result has been a worrying decline in public morality. Among individuals, material wealth has been enshrined as the only criterion for personal success, often leading to morally questionable behaviour. This social malady contributes to a wide range of problems, such as repeated food safety scandals and a lack of compassion for the marginalized and those in need of help. Without cultural development, increased material wealth will not bring peace and prosperity, but only cause more social tension. It has become urgent to put cultural development on the right track.
In order to achieve this, the first thing the authorities must do is to drop restrictions on the cultural industries, allowing Chinese people to engage freely in creativity and communication. For too long, such restrictions have suffocated China’s creative workers, hindering cultural development. Only when the Chinese people can freely participate in cultural creativity will Chinese culture have a hope of achieving the “great rejuvenation” that the government has called for.
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Badeling Pass | Beijing
Sep 2011 | Submitted by Brian Snelson
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