The May 4th Movement: Intellectual Revolution in Modern China

by Chow Tse-Tung

All observers agree that the movement named for the students’ mass demonstration of May 4, 1919, is a turning point in China’s history; yet its precise significance is disputed. The Chinese Communists see it as the beginning of a popular movement that brought them to power thirty years later. The heart of the movement, as carefully described in Tse-tsung Chow’s volume, involved, in the first instance, the criticism by China’s young intelligentsia of traditional thought and institutions. It involved a search for new solutions in terms of Western democracy and science. The movement, which roughly covers the years 1917–1921, was intensified to new heights by the student strikes of 1919 against the decisions on China reached at Versailles and against the Chinese government’s policy toward Japan. The ideas and tendencies that arose out of the movement have determined the subsequent course of Chinese history. Without an understanding of this movement, recent Chinese history remains a closed book.

Genres: China, History, Nonfiction

Paperback

First published January 1, 1960

Reviews

[Zhonghao He · Rating 5 out of 5]

Neutral, objective. Good reading material for The May Fourth Movement.

It became increasingly hard to understand this period of history as different parties and schools (Communists, liberals, and traditionalists & nationalists) tried to interpret MFM for their own good. As a consequence, history was distorted.

John King Fairbank regarded this book as the "most comprehensive and fully documented study," and other reviewers in Douban also agreed.

One of the historical roles of MFM was to welcome modern ideas, especially science and democracy, to China, an old nation bestowed with thousands of years of history. 100 years later, science and democracy still seem very far.

[Jessica Zu · Rating 4 out of 5]

old, but still provide useful info

[Kaleb Wulf · Rating 2 out of 5]

Wow, they went crazy in China for my birthday
Very academic, again would've preferred to read beginning and conclusion, but reading the entire thing gave me some interesting detail about the entirety of the movement. Mostly an intellectual movement that's popularity ends up bringing the labor of the major cities. The first ignition in a chain reaction leading to the completion of the Communist Revolution in 1949 (Mao himself remembering marching in May 4th protests fondly). But important to note that no one ideology was the lead of the movement, it was practically everyone against the warlords and educational gatekeepers. It's telling that one of the main outcomes of this period is the elevation of vernacular Chinese, removing another barrier to literacy for the peasants/laborers. If there's any moment in time that was key in liberating the underclass of China, it was here in which the journey really begins.

[Levi Wong · Rating 5 out of 5]

这是我从学校毕业以来第一次真正的全面的了解五四运动究竟是什么？以及这个运动对于日后的中国产生了什么样的影响。我觉得对我的帮助很大，特别是让我看清楚了自己作为一个对于知识有渴求，对于社会有期待，对公平公正有盼望的人应该在当下从个人角度出发做好哪些事情。

思想观念的变革对我来说非常重要，但是真正解决社会问题或者改变一个民族的文化，这是需要花费很长很长的时间，而我们在解决这些问题的时候要有耐心不放弃，不气馁，要勇敢，最重要的是对于一切的观念，不管是谁告诉我们的思考要批判要沉静下来能够真正的做研究，而不是像这个运动一开始的时候，那些所谓知识分子，他们对于各种主义只是由浅薄的认识而不能完全的把握这些舶来的观点。

这个运动到后来发展成什么样子真的不是人可以左右的，我相信看不见的手也在引导着历史的走向

[Hou · Rating 5 out of 5]

“忠实记录这场运动对任何专制主义来说，都将成为一个威胁”

堪比太史公

[Bin Dong · Rating 1 out of 5]

A lot of contents has been deleted, the original page is around 550, these deleted words are CCP won't want you to read

[Jiro · Rating 5 out of 5]

几个维度：1.五四运动的历史叙事（评价）之争；2.思潮之梳理，各派观点与选择；3.实质影响（文学和社会）与后续政党利用。

[王棕 · Rating 5 out of 5]

@自藏，于读书会

[Royce · Rating 5 out of 5]

100年過去了，後浪在五四這天歡呼自己代表他們一代人的未來，厭惡黑暗，卻無視專橫的黑暗。前浪所做過的努力，所疾呼過的聲音正在被娛樂所消解和掩飾，“弄潮兒歪曲和操縱這股潮流”，五四精神被總結成“聽話”。儘管此書的觀點並不十分尖銳，但盡可能詳盡地介紹了五四的前因後果以及澄清各類影響因素，作者所說“忠實記述這場運動對任何專制主義來說，都將成為一個威脅”，不過我現在悲觀地感到，新思潮新文化運動，思想大論戰，以及對知識和思想的尊重，和對政治和社會的極大關注，已經很難在學生和老師身上看到。