Social Sciences in China (Chinese Edition)

No. 4, 2023

The Transformation of Civilizational Forms in a Changing World and a Vision for the Future

(Abstract)

Xiang Jiuyu

Civilizations are time-bound and constantly in flux. Historically, changes in the world have driven the transformation of civilizational forms. In the changing world of the 21st century, the transformation of productive life, the restructuring of world politics, the reshaping of values and ideals, and the reform of global governance are profoundly influencing the future narrative of human civilization. On the basis of reflection on Western modernity, the new form of human civilization created by Chinese-style modernization has entered the stage of world history, which reflects on and transcends the “paradox of civilization” brought about by capitalism. The intellectual system marked by 21st century Marxism has shaped the deep spiritual structure of the new form of human civilization. At a dividing point in the history of this changing world, in order to transcend the Western-centered concept of “universal civilization” and the confrontational trap of the clash of civilizations and to solve the world’s risky social problems, we need to use the human community with a shared future as the carrier of world history, and to make concerted efforts to move towards a pluralistic vision of the modernity with a civilization self-consciousness, a picture of socialist civilization on a higher historical level, a picture of civilizational interaction and mutual cultural appreciation in a beautiful civilization for all, and ultimately a vision of all civilizations living together to create a better society for humanity.