Liang Shuming and Hu Shi on Chinese and Western culture: philosophical debates in the 1920s and 1930s

In the early 20th century, Chinese society underwent radical changes, and the introduction of Western civilization caused a crisis of traditional Chinese culture. Hu Shi advocated “total Westernization”, believing that China should fully embrace Western science and democracy to promote modernization. He criticized Liang Shuming’s views for being too general and ignoring the complexity of culture. Liang Shuming advocated cultural conservatism, opposed “total Westernization”, and emphasized the need to rethink and promote the intrinsic value of traditional Chinese culture. This article examines the philosophical debate between Liang Shuming and Hu Shi about Chinese and Western culture in the 1920s and 1930s. This debate not only reflected the ideological conflicts in Chinese society at that time during the modernization process, but also laid the theoretical foundation for the formation of modern Chinese cultural nationalism. By analyzing the views of two scholars, the article reveals their differences between cultural conservatism and cultural reformism and explores the implications of these debates for the development of modern Chinese culture.