Subjectivity: Marxism and “The Spiritual” in China Since Mao
Author(s)
Tongqi, Lin
Abstract
A trend toward subjectivity has been prominent in the intellectual discourse of post-Mao China. The trend, a response to Mao’s ultraleftism as well as the influence of Western concepts, has developed gradually within the context of Marxist philosophy rather than as a departure from it. Li Zehou’s reevaluation of Kant in his ‘Critique of the Philosophy of Critique’ (1979) inaugurated the trend toward subjectivity, which has since ramified into a variety of disciplines, although philosophy remains at its core. Major themes and concepts related to the subjectivity trend include practice, cognition, value, praxis materialism, depth psychology and transcendence.
