scholarly journals Path Dependence and the Authoritarian Regime in Traditional Chinese Culture: A Historical Institutionalism Framework of Analysis

2012 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xuanhui Liu
2013 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 1 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xuanhui Liu

The democratic situation in China is deeply influenced by the traditional culture. This article attempt to answer the question why there is no democracy in Chinese traditional culture from historical institutionalism perspective. Path dependence plays the vital role in this process. The starting point is set in Qin Dynasty. After that, the authoritarian regime has been strengthened from four aspects: the bureaucratic system, the Confucian theory, the imperial examination system, and rewards and punishing measures. These measures work from the institutions to people’s inner world. The authoritarian culture became the orthodox value in Chinese traditional culture. The authoritarian regime and traditional culture have been intertwined and strengthened each other. That is a process of path dependence from historical institutionalism perspective. This article shows us a framework of how to observe this process.


2020 ◽  
Vol 1 (3) ◽  
pp. 161-167
Author(s):  
Wang Kaidi ◽  

The article is devoted to the Opera "The Dawns Here Are Quiet" by the Chinese composer Tang Jianping based on the same-named novel by Boris Vasilyev. The theme of the Great Patriotic War, which for the first time became the plot of the Chinese Opera, was in tune with the theme of the Chinese Resistance to the Japanese Invasion. The composition synthesizes the characteristics of the European opera type in its Russified version, which was reflected in the heroic and epic dramaturgy and multi-part musical text. Russian folklore allusions, quasi- quotes from Russian operas, military-patriotic and Soviet mass songs reflect the author's method. The integrity of musical dramaturgy was given by the leitmotif, which became the main marker of Russian identity in the Opera. The Opera lacks a naturalistic embodiment of the War, and depicts the enemy in a conventional, symbolic way, in the form of unnamed but recognizable figures. The creators of the play sought to reveal the barbaric essence of the War, its anti-human character, to present the psychological state of the heroes and the manifestation of their human nature. The theme of the death of young girls gave a special perspective to the Opera, which is particularly acute in China due to gender disparity. The concept of the composer, director and screenwriter reflects the ideological constants of traditional Chinese culture, which gave the Opera an internal subtext.


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