Zhen Xiaoying: Core Cultural Characteristics of Chinese Modernization
General Secretary Xi Jinping has pointed out: "Chinese-path modernization is deeply rooted in fine traditional Chinese culture, embodies the advanced nature of scientific socialism, draws upon and absorbs all outstanding achievements of human civilization, represents the developmental direction of human civilization's progress, and presents a new picture different from Western modernization models. It is a new form of human civilization." As the core of this new civilizational form, the cultural characteristics of Chinese-path modernization are deeply embedded in the fertile soil of fine traditional Chinese culture, organically integrating the essence of revolutionary culture and advanced socialist culture. It both adheres to the foundational truth of Marxism and manifests the unique character of the great practice of socialism with Chinese characteristics, constituting a deep cultural structure and lineage [1] distinct from Western modernization. From the people-centered value stance and the inclusive spirit of "harmony in diversity," to the developmental concept of upholding the fundamentals and breaking new ground and the ultimate pursuit of the free and well-rounded development of individuals, these cultural characteristics do more than precisely define the civilizational character of Chinese-path modernization; they fundamentally overcome the inherent malaises of Western modernization and inject lasting spiritual impetus into Chinese-path modernization.
From the perspective of value orientation, Chinese-path modernization adheres to a people-centered cultural stance.
General Secretary Xi Jinping has emphasized: "The people-oriented nature is the essential attribute of Marxism. The Party's theory is a theory that comes from the people, is for the people, and benefits the people; the people’s creative practice is the inexhaustible source of theoretical innovation." This important discourse profoundly reveals the theoretical foundation of "people-centeredness" in Chinese-path modernization. It is rooted in the scientific core of the Marxist view of the masses [2] and inherits the millennia-old wisdom of "the people as the foundation of the state" [3] from fine traditional Chinese culture, constituting a value marker that distinguishes it from Western modernization. Western modernization takes capital as its logical starting point and regards capital appreciation as its core goal. Driven by the profit-seeking nature of capital, the distribution of wealth is seriously imbalanced, with vast amounts of social wealth concentrating in the hands of a few capital owners. The gap between rich and poor continues to widen, class calcification intensifies, and society ultimately falls into the developmental trap of "the rich getting richer and the poor getting poorer," making it difficult to achieve common development for the entire populace. Conversely, Chinese-path modernization centers on the people, taking "the people's aspiration for a better life" as its goal of struggle. At the material level, through strategic deployments such as the fight against poverty and rural revitalization, it resolves the problems of unbalanced and inadequate development, allowing all people to participate equally in the process of modernization and share in the fruits of reform and development. At the spiritual level, by improving the public cultural service system and promoting the coordinated development of cultural undertakings and cultural industries, it precisely meets the people's ever-growing spiritual and cultural needs. This prominently demonstrates the cultural essence of the people's subjectivity.
From the perspective of developmental concepts, Chinese-path modernization adheres to a cultural view of upholding the fundamentals and breaking new ground.
Chinese-path modernization adheres to a cultural view of development that upholds the fundamentals and breaks new ground, innovating through inheritance and inheriting through innovation. This breaks the binary opposition between tradition and modernity, as well as the path dependency on Western modernization models. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "Since the 18th National Congress of the CPC, we have insisted on placing cultural development in a prominent position in state governance, making a series of major deployments and forming the Thought on Culture of Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era. We have pushed cultural development to achieve historical achievements through radical reform [4] and upholding the fundamentals and breaking new ground. The cultural confidence of the whole Party and people of all ethnic groups has been significantly strengthened, cultural creativity is vibrant, cultural undertakings and industries are more prosperous, the spiritual and cultural lives of the masses are richer, and solid steps have been taken in building a socialist cultural power." Upholding the fundamentals is the foundation—that is, adhering to the core spirit of fine traditional Chinese culture, the guiding position of Marxism, and the socialist direction of development. Breaking new ground is the driving force—that is, promoting the adaptation of traditional culture to modern society and its integration with technological innovation, promoting the Sinicization and modernization of Marxism, and exploring a modernization path consistent with China's national conditions. This developmental view ensures that Chinese-path modernization both holds fast to the roots of fine traditional Chinese culture, continuing the cultural lineage and maintaining cultural continuity, while also standing at the forefront of the times to absorb new ideas and achievements. This endows cultural development with new kinetic energy and a vitality that advances with the times, injecting lasting spiritual strength into the modernization process.
From the perspective of the civilizational framework, Chinese-path modernization upholds a cultural view of inclusion based on "harmony in diversity."
General Secretary Xi Jinping has pointed out: "Chinese civilization possesses outstanding inclusivity. This inclusivity fundamentally determines the historical orientation of the Chinese nation toward interaction, exchange, and integration; it determines the harmonious pattern of the co-existence of diverse religious beliefs in China; and it determines the open-mindedness of Chinese culture toward the eclectic absorption of world civilizations." This important discourse is rooted in the historical tradition of "being kind to neighbors" [5] and "harmonizing all nations" [6] practiced by Chinese civilization for thousands of years. It profoundly elucidates the civilizational depth of the "harmony in diversity" cultural view of inclusion in Chinese-path modernization, providing profound cultural nourishment for the exchange and mutual learning between contemporary China and world civilizations. The process of Western modernization has always been accompanied by the proliferation of theories regarding "civilizational superiority" and the "clash of civilizations." Western countries position themselves as civilizational saviors, treating their own developmental models as absolute and universal. Through hegemony such as colonial expansion and cultural infiltration, they forcibly export their values and developmental models, leading to constant contradictions and conflicts between different civilizations. Chinese-path modernization completely rejects this hegemonic thinking and upholds a cultural view of inclusion based on harmony in diversity, firmly asserting that civilizations are not superior or inferior but merely possess different characteristics, and respecting the diversity of world cultures. This concept is specifically manifested in practice: at the level of developmental cooperation, through high-quality development of the Belt and Road Initiative, China carries out equal and mutually beneficial cooperation with participating countries, allowing civilizational exchange and mutual learning to take root; at the level of global governance, China advocates the concepts of extensive consultation, joint contribution, and shared benefits, opposing unilateralism and protectionism. The cultural view of harmony in diversity, rooted in the profound heritage of Chinese civilization’s pursuit of global harmony, abandons the logic of civilizational hegemony inherent in Western modernization. It fundamentally determines that Chinese-path modernization is a modernization that promotes the symbiosis, co-prosperity, and peaceful development of human civilizations.
From the perspective of ultimate goals, Chinese-path modernization pursues a cultural value theory of the well-rounded development of the individual.
Western modernization, which takes capital appreciation as its core goal, is excessively obsessed with the accumulation of material wealth, falling into a deep predicament where instrumental rationality expands while value rationality is lost. Driven by the profit-seeking nature of capital, humans are reduced to tools of capital, and spiritual pursuits are completely commodified. This one-sided developmental model ultimately leads to a serious imbalance between material and spiritual civilization, constraining the sustainable development of society. Chinese-path modernization breaks out of this misunderstanding and takes the promotion of well-rounded human development as its ultimate goal, achieving a dialectical unity between instrumental and value rationality. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "We must respond to the people's growing spiritual and cultural needs, build a socialist ideology with strong cohesion and leadership, strengthen education on ideals and convictions and the 'Four Histories,' cultivate and promote the core socialist values, develop advanced socialist culture, and produce more outstanding literary and artistic works. We must constantly enrich the people's spiritual world, raise the level of civilization across society, and promote the well-rounded development of the individual." Well-rounded human development involves both material abundance and spiritual fulfillment; it concerns both the improvement of individual quality and the harmony of social relations. In the process of Chinese-path modernization, China consistently insists on the simultaneous promotion of material and spiritual civilization. By cultivating and practicing core socialist values, it uses culture to transform and educate people [7]. Through the "poetry craze" and "museum craze," it builds cultural confidence and guides people to establish a correct outlook on the world, life, and values. Through continuous reforms in fields such as educational equity, universal healthcare, and employment security, it improves the public service system to create fair conditions for everyone’s growth and success. This cultural value theory centered on well-rounded human development anchors the dual goals of material wealth and spiritual richness. It fundamentally avoids the lopsidedness of Western modernization—which emphasizes the material while neglecting the spiritual—and demonstrates the distinct advantages of Chinese-path modernization in coordinating efficiency and fairness for sustainable development.