How to treat the position and function of Westernization Movement in the process of China's modernization?
The focus of the debate is whether the Westernization Movement promoted or delayed the semi-colonization of China society, thus forming two tit-for-tat opinions. 1. accelerated the process of semi-colonization of China. People who hold this view are Qi (then signed "Han Sheng"), Mou Anshi and others. Qi believed that the Westernization Movement "pushed China society to a semi-colonial road". There are two reasons: first, the army trained by the Westernization Movement and the military industry mastered by it are semi-colonial. First, under the control of foreign invaders, it became a "good place" for the western bourgeoisie to sell surplus military equipment and suck the fat of the people of China; Second, it can only be used to suppress the domestic people's revolution and cannot be used to resist foreign aggression. " Secondly, "the economic enterprises developed by the Westernization School are firstly" government-run ",followed by" government-supervised business "and" joint venture between government and business ". The management power is in the hands of' officials', which is directly related to the feudal regime and serves the feudal rule. These enterprises are closely dependent on foreign capital both economically and technically, which has opened a "convenient door" for the western bourgeoisie to plunder China's economy. This determines their nature, but it is feudal and comprador bureaucratic capitalism. " Mou Anshi believed that the Westernization Movement accelerated the process of semi-colonization in China. First of all, during the Westernization Movement, commercial ports grew from five to thirty-six. They spread all over China's coastal and frontier areas, and went deep into China to varying degrees. This "actually shows the expansion of the trap of unequal treaties and the deepening of China's semi-colonization". Secondly, Hurd, the General Tax Department of China Customs, strengthened the control of China's financial power during this period, and the Westernization School also relied on foreigners everywhere in its diplomatic activities during this period and implemented the policy of traitorous surrender. " Thirdly, "the import and export trade deficit is getting bigger and bigger under the condition of unequal exchange", which seriously affects the national economy and people's livelihood. In a word, "Westernization Movement" was the formation period of semi-colonial and semi-feudal society in China. The Westernization Movement did not delay the process of semi-colonization of China, but accelerated it. ". 2. Delayed the process of China's semi-colonization. This theory is represented by Kong Lingren, Li and Li. Kong Lingren believed that the Westernization Movement delayed the semi-colonization of China. Because: China will become a semi-colony, "there are two main reasons, one is that the foreign invaders who entered China are too strong, and the other is that China is too backward". Under the circumstances at that time, "it was inevitable that China would become a semi-colony, and even thought it might become a colony and be carved up. In the face of such bad luck, all classes have their own attitudes. " "The resistance of the Westernization School is not as firm as that of the broad masses of the people, but in the long run, it is an effective and fundamental way to resist foreign aggression to engage in Westernization, develop capitalism, stress the skill of becoming rich and strong, and improve armaments", although its achievements have been greatly weakened due to various reasons. However, through the Westernization Movement, China established a new type of army after all, and a number of modern enterprises appeared. This army has made some efforts in resisting foreign military aggression, and these modern enterprises have also played some positive roles in resisting foreign economic aggression. Therefore, I think that the role of Westernization School in China's semi-colony did not play a promoting role like the Qing government and die-hards, but played a delaying role like the broad masses of the people. ".The Reform Movement of 1898; The influence of political reform in recent years, some historians believe that the reform movement had no hope of success from the beginning. Apart from the fact that Emperor Guangxu lacked the power and prestige to carry out reforms, the reformists (especially Kang Youwei as a think tank) were doomed to failure because of their ignorance of political reality and their rough understanding of western social systems. The Reform Movement of 1898 is an event of great significance in China's modern history. It is a patriotic national salvation movement and an ideological emancipation movement. It demands the development of capitalist economy and the expansion of bourgeois regime, which conforms to the historical trend of modern China's development, and is therefore a progressive political reform movement. It spread the new bourgeois culture and new ideas, criticized the old feudal culture and old ideas, and was another enlightenment thought. It is conducive to the development of capitalism and the spread of western science and technology, laying the foundation for the spread of bourgeois ideas. This is very beneficial for capitalism to participate in political power, develop capitalist economy and spread capitalist ideas.