Li Yuanyuan: The Fundamental Contributions of the "People-Centered" Cultural Concept
The people are the creators of history and the fundamental force that determines the future and destiny of the Party and the state. Since the 18th National Congress of the CPC, General Secretary Xi Jinping has profoundly grasped the internal laws of socialist cultural development. By establishing "upholding a people-centered approach" as the basic stance and inexhaustible driving force of cultural development, he has proposed a series of new propositions, viewpoints, and requirements, making principled contributions to the enrichment and development of Marxist cultural theory. A so-called "principled contribution" refers to a theoretical innovation that reflects the essence of the world, reveals objective laws and historical development trends, and possesses universal guiding significance. The principled contribution of the "people-centered" outlook on culture is primarily manifested at the levels of ontology, axiology, and methodology.
1. Ontology: Clarifying the Subject Status and Rich Connotation of "the People"
Historical materialism holds that the people are the subjects who create history, creating their own material and spiritual lives through purposeful practical activities. Marx and Engels pointed out: "History is nothing but the activity of man pursuing his aims." A "people-oriented" character (人民性) is the most distinctive quality of Marxism; a focus on the actual existential and developmental state of humanity and respect for human subjectivity are the main threads running through the Marxist ideological system. Upholding a people-centered outlook on culture is rooted in the Marxist materialist conception of history and represents an innovative development of basic Marxist principles within the cultural sphere.
First, it clarifies the subject status of the people in cultural creation. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "The people are both the creators and witnesses of history; they are both the 'actors' in history and the 'playwrights' of history." The people are the creators of material wealth, but even more so, they are the creators of spiritual wealth. Culture with Chinese characteristics is, in essence, a culture created by the people and shared by the people. The people are both the primary force in socialist cultural construction and its service targets, achieving a dialectical unity of subject and object in historical creation and cultural practice.
Second, it scientifically elucidates the concept of "the people," endowing it with a more profound connotation. General Secretary Xi Jinping profoundly noted: "The people are not an abstract symbol, but a collection of specific individuals, each with flesh and blood, emotions, loves and hates, and dreams, each with internal conflicts and sorrows." Here, "the people" are neither an abstracted whole nor atomized individuals, nor are they the same as the "min" (民) in traditional Chinese "民本" [1] thought; rather, they are individuals situated within real social relations. Taking the millions upon millions of real people in actual life as the subject provides socialist cultural undertakings with the broadest mass foundation. This requires that the focus of cultural work be implemented down to the cultural demands and emotional needs of every member of the masses, giving full attention to individual development.
Finally, it clearly defines the rich layers of the people's subjective status in cultural creation. First, the people are positioned as the subjects of cultural service. General Secretary Xi Jinping proposed that "satisfying the people's spiritual and cultural needs must be the starting point and the ultimate goal of literature, art, and cultural work." Culture is work centered on the person; its efficacy depends on the extent to which it enters the human heart and enriches the people's spiritual life. Therefore, the people's sense of gain and happiness must be used as the standard for measuring cultural development. Second, the people are positioned as the subjects of cultural representation. General Secretary Xi Jinping proposed "upholding the people's standpoint and writing enduring epics of the people." The authentic emotions and real lives of the masses are the source of cultural production; divorced from the people and from life, culture will lose the real soil for its prosperity and development. Only by drawing nourishment from the practice and lives of the people can one fully feel the pulse of the times, grasp the general trend of the spirit of the times, and create great works that reflect the laws of social development. Third, the people are positioned as the subjects of evaluation. General Secretary Xi Jinping proposed "treating the people as the connoisseurs and judges of literary and artistic aesthetics." Treating the people as cultural connoisseurs requires observing the people's lives and emotions, deeply understanding their aesthetic tastes, joys, and sorrows, and producing works that express the people's voices. Treating the people as cultural judges requires changing the one-sided perception of the people as merely passive recipients, handing the power of evaluation over to them, and letting the people truly possess the discourse power to influence cultural production and dissemination. Fourth, the people are positioned as the subjects of creation. General Secretary Xi Jinping proposed that "all innovation in literature and art, in the final analysis, stems directly or indirectly from the people." Only by respecting the subject status and pioneering spirit of the masses, providing a stage for the people’s cultural practice, and transforming the masses from passive recipients into active participants and creators, can the cultural creative vitality of the entire nation burst forth continuously, providing a deep social foundation for cultural prosperity.
2. Axiology: Emphasizing the Value-Guiding Function of Culture
Marxism holds that the significance of cultural activity lies in the fact that it embodies the state of human freedom to the highest degree; it is the fundamental attribute of being human, the "species-life" [2] of man, and the goal of human social development. The goal of developing culture with Chinese characteristics is to promote the well-rounded development of the person and the all-round progress of society. The richness and sufficiency of spiritual life are important indicators for achieving the free and well-rounded development of the person, a goal that lays the value foundation for the "people-centered" outlook on culture.
First, it emphasizes the value-guiding function of culture, upholding the unity of "conveying the Dao through literature" (文以载道) [3] and "cultivating the person through culture" (以文化人). General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized: "'The way of establishing literature lies only in the word and the meaning.' Only by striving upward and toward the good can literature and art become the clarion call of the era. Only by stopping at the highest excellence can one attain the highest beauty." The "Dao" (道) carried by "literature" (文) today primarily refers to the mainstream ideology with socialist core values at its core. This includes the inheritance of the value pursuits contained within basic Marxist principles, the development of the "genetic" excellence of traditional Chinese culture, and the absorption of the world's outstanding value heritage. It embodies truth, ideology, and depth, representing the moral aspirations generally recognized and yearned for by the whole of society. It is the historical mission of cultural work to meet the people's cultural needs, elevate their spiritual character, and enrich their internal world through excellent cultural works—cultivating the vital essence, establishing the heart, and casting the soul through culture—to better construct Chinese spirit, Chinese values, and Chinese strength.
Second, it attaches great importance to the social functions of culture, promoting the unity of satisfying people’s cultural needs and enhancing their spiritual strength. The rejuvenation of a nation requires powerful material strength, but also powerful spiritual strength. The purpose of cultural construction with Chinese characteristics is to serve the person, using all the spiritual wealth created by the Chinese nation to nourish, cultivate, and guide people. At the Yan'an Forum on Literature and Art [4], Comrade Mao Zedong specifically discussed the relationship between "popularization" and "elevation," treating "popularization" as the foundation for "elevation." In 2013, at the National Conference on Public Communications and Ideological Work, General Secretary Xi Jinping explicitly required that "we must establish a people-centered work orientation, combining service to the masses with educating and guiding the masses, and combining the satisfaction of needs with the improvement of quality." The Fifth Plenary Session of the 19th CPC Central Committee required "promoting the unity of satisfying people's cultural needs and enhancing their spiritual strength." The report to the 20th National Congress of the CPC proposed "upholding a people-centered creative orientation and launching more excellent works that enhance the people's spiritual strength." Cultural works possess strong externalities and social functions; they can influence a nation's spiritual direction, degree of civilization, and the construction of its moral order. Regarding the needs of the people, we cannot be satisfied with merely catering to them; we must pay even more attention to guiding and elevating them. This requires us to earnestly study the characteristics of the masses' cultural needs in the New Era, nourish the people's hearts with excellent works that are ideologically profound, fresh, simple, and vigorous, and enhance the people's sense of cultural gain through high-quality development of cultural supply. Cultural development is, in the final analysis, for human development and human happiness. Only by satisfying every person's spiritual and cultural needs and letting the people fully enjoy the fruits of cultural development can a spiritual state of self-confidence, self-improvement, high morale, and active progress be formed throughout society.
Finally, addressing the dual attributes of cultural production, it proposes the evaluation standard of "unifying the two effects." Cultural products possess both ideological functions and the attributes of a commodity. How should the relationship between the market and the "ideological battlefield" (阵地) be handled? How do we handle the relationship between capital and orientation? How can we avoid the tendencies toward vulgarity, kitsch, and pandering in a highly marketized environment? How can the "people-centered" requirement be truly implemented in an industrialized environment? General Secretary Xi Jinping proposed the principled requirement of "persisting in putting social benefits first, and unifying social benefits with economic benefits." The proposal of this "unification of two effects" provides an important guideline for cultural creation and production under current market economy conditions. General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized: "Literature and art must not lose their direction in the Great Tide of the market economy, nor can they deviate on the question of 'for whom they exist.'" This requires us to comprehensively understand the dialectical relationship between economic and social benefits. On one hand, social benefits must be realized through effective dissemination and the voluntary acceptance and identification of the people; on the other hand, economic benefits cannot be used as the sole standard for measuring the quality and level of cultural development. Rather, we must look at whether more cultural products that enhance the people's spiritual strength can be provided, placing greater emphasis on the value dimensions, spiritual orientation, and humanistic connotations of cultural development. Advancing the great cause of socialism with Chinese characteristics requires guiding people to establish ideals and beliefs, and to form correct views on history, ethnicity, the state, and culture, using the great power of thought to condense the heart and cast the soul, gathering the strength of the whole Party and the people of the whole country for united struggle.
3. Methodology: Promoting Theoretical Innovation Through Practical Innovation
A principled contribution is not merely an epistemology at the theoretical level; more importantly, it must provide a methodology at the practical level. Only by integrating the "people-centered" principle throughout cultural systems, cultural policies, and cultural practices—implementing it as the path and method for promoting the prosperity and development of socialist culture in the New Era—can theoretical innovation be continuously pushed forward through the mutual reinforcement of theory and practice.
First, "taking root among the people and in life" is established as the driving force for cultural creation. General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized: "There may be a hundred or a thousand methods for literary and artistic creation, but the most fundamental, critical, and reliable method is to take root among the people and in life." If cultural production loses the nourishment of real life and its concern for the people, it will lose the real soil for its prosperity and development. Art originates from life but is higher than life. Only by drawing nourishment from the practice and lives of the people, accumulating over time, refining with care, and continuously sublimating, can one fully feel the pulse of regional development, master the general trend of the spirit of the times, and create great works that reflect the laws of social development.
Second, the cultural rights of the people must be guaranteed, and satisfying the people's spiritual and cultural needs must be the starting point and ultimate goal of cultural work. At present, the people's spiritual and cultural needs exhibit the characteristics of the era: multi-level and diverse. This requires us to provide targeted cultural products and services based on differentiated features, forming a supply system that is well-developed, multi-layered, and accurately matched. On one hand, through improving the public cultural service system, we must establish mechanisms for high-quality cultural resources to reach the grassroots directly, improve mechanisms for social forces to participate in public cultural services, improve feedback and evaluation mechanisms, implement cultural projects for the benefit of the people, and provide cultural products and services where supply matches demand. On the other hand, by improving the cultural industry system and market system, we must enhance the internal driving force of the cultural market, create a market environment of fair competition, and continuously satisfy the multi-level cultural needs of the people. Whether in the construction of a public cultural service system or the development of the cultural industry, the fundamental foothold is satisfying the people's cultural needs and realizing their cultural rights. Therefore, whether the people are satisfied must be used as the important measure for cultural work, truly ensuring that cultural development relies on the people, is for the people, and its fruits are shared by the people.
Finally, we must advance cultural governance and stimulate the cultural innovation and creative vitality of the entire nation. The vitality of culture lies in innovation and creation. Stimulating the wisdom and enthusiasm of the people to participate in cultural creation, so that the fruits of cultural innovation benefit the people, is the source of power for building a socialist cultural powerhouse. First, by deepening the reform of cultural systems and mechanisms, we must break down the barriers and obstacles restricting cultural development, improve cultural management systems and operating mechanisms, and promote academic and artistic democracy to provide institutional guarantees for cultural innovation. Second, we must adapt to the trend of informatization and actively cultivate new forms of cultural business. At present, new literary and artistic organizations and groups are flourishing, fully demonstrating the enormous energy for cultural creation contained among the people. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "It is very likely that famous masters of literature and art will emerge from among these people; throughout history, many such masters in China and abroad have emerged from society and the people." To this end, we should build platforms for them, protect their legitimate rights and interests, strengthen industry management and self-discipline, and promote the standardized and healthy development of new cultural business forms. Third, we must adhere to a people-centered creative orientation, combine the production of results with the cultivation of talent, and link the management of works with the management of the environment, nurturing a policy environment conducive to the formation of high-quality cultural products and services, and constructing a cultural ecosystem of diversified investment, collaborative governance, and mutual empowerment.