An Analysis of the Underlying Laws of Social Development and State Governance

-- A lecture by Professor Li Zhongjie

November 26, 2019

 Hosted by the Institute for China & World Studies and the School of Political Science & International Relations (SPSIR) of Tongji University, the Tongji Serial Lectures on Social Sciences No.21 was successfully held in Room 518 of Huiwen Building, Siping Campus, Tongji University on November 26, 2019. Professor Li Zhongjie, former Deputy Director of the Party History Research Center of the Central Committee of CPC, a member of the Advisory Committee of the Central Marxist Theory Research and Construction Project, and Vice Chairman of Chinese Society of History of CPC, was specially invited to give a keynote speech on the topic of "An Analysis of the Underlying Laws of Social Development and State Governance".

 The lecture was presided over by Tongji Distinguished Professor Men Honghua, President of the Institute for China & World Studies, Dean of SPSIR, and Director of the Research Center for International Cyberspace Governance at Tongji University.

 As an expert of Marxism studies, Prof. Li analyzed the underlying laws of social development and state governance with his profound knowledge, penetrating insight and vivid examples, which inspired the students to think extensively. Prof. Li discussed four key points as follows.

 First of all, Prof. Li said that researchers need to understand and analyze social issues in the contemporary world on a deep level. Any mature society needs both a motivation mechanism and an equilibrium mechanism, since without motivation, a society will stagnate, and without equilibrium, it will be chaotic. This is the underlying theory that explains the laws of social development.

 Then Prof. Li discussed the strengths and weaknesses of different social governance models and the reasons for their generation. Capitalist society’s pursuit of its own material interests is the source of its motive force, but its weakness is the absence of an equilibrium mechanism, which will lead to disorderly competition and a huge waste of resources. Socialist society has improved the equilibrium mechanism, and taken into account the interests of the middle and lower classes of society, thus making the original competition mechanism less cruel. However, socialist countries have to carry out reform if they want to achieve long-term development, since it is impossible to rely solely on spiritual motivation.

 The third issue discussed was the inner dimensions of social changes and the problems in contemporary China. China’s reform and opening up has delivered many benefits, for instance, it has liberalized and invigorated the society and adjusted the motivation mechanism so that every individual and every unit in the society can generate internal motivation. But the thing is that there have been problems arising out of the reform and opening up. While the motivation mechanism is being strengthened, the equilibrium mechanism has failed to advance with the times. This requires us to further improve and adjust the two mechanisms.

 Finally, Prof. Li explored the fourth issue: how to interpret various social phenomena in contemporary China. The professor put forward his own unique views from several aspects including the basic differences between China and other countries, education, human subjectivity, income distribution and others. He particularly analyzed the basic idea of understanding state governance and reform and opening up, and proposed that we should fundamentally grasp the relationship between motivation and equilibrium. Building socialism with Chinese characteristics is fundamentally to form a social operating mechanism that can both motivate vigor and maintain equilibrium, which must be achieved through the system design. The motivation mechanism of the Chinese society should be a comprehensive one that centers on people’s material interests, links the material interests of social members with their economic behaviors and social values in an appropriate form of distribution, and increases the motivation and vitality of social development driven by material interests.

 The lecture came to an end in a big round of applause from the students present who were believed to have benefited a lot.