The Power of Reading – A Recommendation from Xie Chao: The Logic of Political Development in Contemporary China

“The Power of Reading· Always Be Together” thematic activity, jointly organized by Shanghai Federation of Social Science Associations, Shanghai Century Publishing Group and Wenhui Newspaper, invited experts, scholars and readers to share their thoughts and understandings developed in their reading amidst fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, so as to practically inspire love for reading in all people, manifest the power of reading, and bring confidence and hope to the period overshadowed by the pandemic.

Xie Chao

Vice Chairman of the Shanghai Federation of Social Science Associations, President of Shanghai Scientific Socialism Society, Secretary of the CPC Committee of Shanghai Lixin University of Accounting and Finance 

Karl Marx observed that “the extent to which theory is realized in a country is always determined by the degree to which the theory meets the needs of the country”. The rapid development of contemporary China is raising new demands for the development and prosperity of the Chinese Philosophy and Social Science: we need to excavate new materials, discover new problems, put forward new perspectives and construct new theories so that we might produce a better account of China's development, and convey China's beautiful voice.

“This is an era when new theories are in demand and are bound to be produced, and an era when new ideas are demanded and are bound to be come up with. We should live up to this era,” said General Secretary Xi Jinping at the Symposium on Philosophy and Social Sciences Work on May 17th 2016, expressing his earnest expectations of the Chinese philosophy and social science community. While working in Shanghai Federation of Social Science Associations, I participated in the writing and compiling of the series of The Logic of Development in Contemporary China along with several young and middle-aged experts based in Shanghai at the end of 2018. The series, focusing on political, economic, social, cultural and ecological development in contemporary China, intends to timely respond to that major proposition to live up to this era.

The series includes The Logic of Political Development in Contemporary China written by Prof. Tang Yalin of Fudan University. It has constructed highly original knowledge principles and is very innovation in systematic reorganization of knowledge. Intellectually very provocative and logically sound and robust. The book has been awarded First Prize for “Outstanding Achievement for Innovative Theoretical Research for the Party” on Shanghai’s 15th Outstanding Achievements List of Philosophy and Social Science. It’s hereby particularly recommended to all readers and scholars.

《The Logic of Political Development in Contemporary China》

Based on defining the institutional advantages of the leadership of the Communist Party of China, The Logic of Political Development in Contemporary China examines five aspects of the current Chinese political system: institutional principles, operating mechanism, value pursuit, intrinsic logic, contributions to human civilization. The author has come up with an analysis framework of knowledge system on the logic of China's political development. Meanwhile, the historical contributions, unique developments and logic of the Communist Party of China in creating the path of socialist political development with Chinese characteristics are systematically discussed and summarized in this book before exploring for the future trend of human civilization’s development.