Social Sciences in China (Chinese Edition)

No. 9, 2023

 

The Process of Transformation from the Essence of Universality to the Appearance of Universality: The Establishment of Marx’s Historical Horizon

(Abstract)

 

Wu Meng

 

Propositions on the historical issues in Marxist thought originated from Marx’s critique of the mysterious nature of Hegel’s dialectics. The latter configured a relationship between “conceptual things” and “material things” in a false manner. In this regard, the primary goal of Marx’s critique was to establish an internal connection of “conceptual things” and “material things,” without obliterating the externality of material things in relation to conceptual things. The key mechanism of the objects of universal experience plays a vital role here. During a series of ideological dialogues between the young Marx and Hegelian philosophy, especially that of Feuerbach’s humanism, the connotations of the objects of universal experience underwent an intrinsic transformation. This not only linked given historical processes, but also extended the transformation of the universal dimension into the “appearance of universality” with a historical dimension. The process of establishing Marx’s historical horizon shows important methodological features; it offers a special inspiration for the analysis of contemporary human life.