The Chinese Dream (simplified Chinese: 中国梦; traditional Chinese: 中國夢; pinyin: Zhōngguó Mèng) is a term promoted by Xi Jinping since 2013 within Chinese society that describes a set of personal and national ethos and ideals in China.
It is used by journalists, government officials, and activists to
describe the role of the individual in Chinese society as well as the
goals of the Chinese nation.
The phrase is closely associated with Xi Jinping, who is the General Secretary of the Communist Party of China (Paramount leader). Xi began promoting the phrase as a slogan in a high-profile visit to the National Museum of China in November 2012 after taking the office of general secretary. Since then, use of the phrase has become widespread in official announcements and the embodiment of the political ideology of the leadership under Xi Jinping. Xi said that young people should "dare to dream, work assiduously to fulfill the dreams and contribute to the revitalization of the nation". According to the party's theoretical journal Qiushi, the Chinese Dream is about Chinese prosperity, collective effort, socialism, and national glory. The relationship between the phrase and the American Dream has been debated.
The phrase is closely associated with Xi Jinping, who is the General Secretary of the Communist Party of China (Paramount leader). Xi began promoting the phrase as a slogan in a high-profile visit to the National Museum of China in November 2012 after taking the office of general secretary. Since then, use of the phrase has become widespread in official announcements and the embodiment of the political ideology of the leadership under Xi Jinping. Xi said that young people should "dare to dream, work assiduously to fulfill the dreams and contribute to the revitalization of the nation". According to the party's theoretical journal Qiushi, the Chinese Dream is about Chinese prosperity, collective effort, socialism, and national glory. The relationship between the phrase and the American Dream has been debated.
History
Chinese literature
The
phrase "Chinese Dream" (中国梦) corresponds with the associated idea of a
collective hope for restoring China's lost national greatness and has
ancient origins in Chinese literary and intellectual history. In the Classic of Poetry (Shi Jing), the poem "Flowing Spring" (下泉) describes a poet waking up in despair after dreaming of the former Western Zhou dynasty. During the troubled Southern Song
dynasty, the poet Zheng Sixiao wrote a poem in which he coined the
phrase "Heart full of [the] Chinese Dream (中国梦), the ancient poem
'Flowing Spring.'" Moreover, popular patriotic literary and theatrical works in early 20th century China also made reference to a "China Dream."
US literature
In 2008, architect Neville Mars, author Adrian Hornsby, and the Dynamic City Foundation published The Chinese Dream – a society under construction. The book investigates China's initial wave of rapid urbanization as it transitions to a socialist-market economy.
Maps of the emerging spatial forms and analysis of the economic
development processes that have originated within the extreme conditions
of the 1980s and 1990s are combined with progressive planning concepts
and personal portraits of a rapidly changing society. As such it
synthesizes a body of research to tackle the main paradoxes at the heart
of China's struggle for change and a more equitable and sustainable
future.
According to Mars, "The present is so all-consuming that fast
realities threaten to eclipse the slow dream of tomorrow." The
overarching premise of the book is that China reveals a direct
correlation between its shifting urban forms and its waning societal
objectives. In that sense the book has arguably been prophetic. Written
eight years ahead of the 12th FYP that holds the same thematic title
"The Chinese Dream" (Chinese: 中国梦; pinyin: Zhōngguó Mèng)
it introduces the notion that China's highly fragmented, sclerotic
urban patterns determine a path of increasing inefficiency and
energy-dependence. Mars introduces the term "MUD", or Market-driven
Unintentional Development to describe this new hybrid urban condition,
and suggests that planning itself needs to be radically redefined in
order to be effective and not contribute to the extreme ex-urbanization.
The conclusion of the book is "No New Cities" (杜绝新城), and a call for
models of upgrading of existing urban centers and suburbs.
In 2010, author Helen H. Wang published her first book The Chinese Dream.
The book is based on over 100 interviews of the new members of the
middle class in China. In the book, Wang did not define the Chinese
Dream; rather, she conveyed the hopes and dreams of the Chinese people
through intimate portraits of this growing demographic.
The Chinese Dream has won Eric Hoffer Book Awards. In 2011, the book was translated into Chinese《中国梦》and published in China. In 2012, the second edition of The Chinese Dream with a foreword by Lord Wei was published. In the foreword, Wei wrote:
The Chinese Dream today as portrayed in Helen's book speaks of a changing China that is discovering consumerism, that is increasingly globalised, and also at a cross roads. Will her path in years to come continue to be one that resembles that of Western countries with all the benefits of further urbanization, wealth, and industrialization, but at the same time challenges in managing scarce resources, population migration, and the social problems that affluence can bring, elsewhere called 'Affluenza'? Or will the Chinese people themselves inside and outside China create a new sustainable Chinese Dream, based on their ancient values of respect for culture, family, and nature, harnessing technology and creativity?
In September 2012, Helen H. Wang gave a copy of her book The Chinese Dream to Tom Friedman at a dinner in Shanghai hosted by Peggy Liu, chairwoman of Joint US-China Collaboration on Clean Energy (JUCCCE).
The New York Times
Thomas Friedman's New York Times article has been credited with popularizing the phrase "Chinese Dream" in China.
The British publication The Economist credits a column written by the American journalist Thomas Friedman for popularizing the term in China. A translation of Friedman's article, "China Needs Its Own Dream", published in The New York Times (October 2012) was widely popular in China.
Friedman attributes the phrase to Peggy Liu, the founder of the
environmentalist NGO JUCCCE. According to Friedman in the magazine Foreign Policy,
"I only deserve part credit... the concept of 'China Dream' was created
by my friend Peggy Liu, as the motto for her NGO about how to introduce
Chinese to the concept of sustainability."
James Fallows of The Atlantic has pointed out that the phrase has frequently been used in the past by journalists. He mentions Deborah Fallow's book Dreaming in Chinese, his own article "What Is the Chinese Dream?", and Gerald Lemos' book The End of the Chinese Dream as examples. In response to Fallows, The Economist cites an article in the Xinhua Daily Telegraph that directly credits Friedman.
"Will the next Chinese leader have a dream that is different from the American dream?" [a paraphrase of a line in Mr Friedman's column]. In a year of political transition, the world's gaze is focused on the east. On the eve of the 18th [Communist Party] congress [at which Mr Xi had been appointed as party chief two weeks earlier] the American columnist Thomas Friedman wrote an article devoted to analysis of the "Chinese dream" titled "China Needs Its Own Dream". It expressed the hope that [the dream would be one that] "marries people's expectations of prosperity with a more sustainable China". Suddenly the "Chinese dream" became a hot topic among commentators at home and abroad.
— Xinhua Daily Telegraph
The Economist writes that references to Friedman's article have also appeared in other Chinese media outlets, including a translation in The References News, in an article written for China's State Council Information Office, on the cover of the magazine Oriental Outlook as the main caption, in a magazine article published by Frontline, and in an article for a local newspaper written by China's ambassador to Romania, Huo Yuzhen. In the preface of the Oriental Outlook
"Chinese Dream" issue, the editor states that "the 18th national
congress of the Chinese Communist Party convened November 8th. "Does the
next generation of Chinese leaders have a 'Chinese Dream' that is
different from the "American Dream"?.... This was a question raised by
one of America's most influential media figures, Thomas Friedman."
Xi Jinping
Xi Jinping, Chinese leader, adopted "Chinese Dream" as a slogan in 2013.
Just after becoming General Secretary of the Communist Party of China
in late 2012, Xi announced what would become the hallmark of his
administration. "The Chinese Dream," he said, is "the great rejuvenation
of the Chinese nation." Xi's Chinese Dream is described as achieving
the Two Centenaries: the material goal of China becoming a "moderately well-off society" by 2021, the 100th anniversary of the Chinese Communist Party, and the modernization goal of China becoming a fully developed nation by about 2049, the 100th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic.
In May 2013, Xi Jinping
called upon young people "to dare to dream, work assiduously to fulfill
the dreams and contribute to the revitalization of the nation". He
called upon all levels of the Party and the government to facilitate
favorable conditions for their career development. Xi told young people
to "cherish the glorious youth, strive with pioneer spirit and
contribute their wisdom and energy to the realization of the Chinese
dream".
According to Robert Lawrence Kuhn,
who is an international investment banker and the author of "How
China's Leaders Think: The Inside Story of China's Reform and What This
Means for the Future", the Chinese Dream has four parts: Strong China
(economically, politically, diplomatically, scientifically, militarily);
Civilized China (equity and fairness, rich culture, high morals);
Harmonious China (amity among social classes); Beautiful China (healthy
environment, low pollution). Khun states that "a moderately well-off
society" is where all citizens, rural and urban, enjoy high standards of
living. This includes doubling the 2010 G.D.P. per capita (approaching
$10,000 per person) by about 2020 and completing urbanization (roughly
one billion people, 70 percent of China's population) by about 2030.
"Modernization" means China regaining its position as a world leader in
science and technology as well as in economics and business; the
resurgence of Chinese civilization, culture and military might; and
China participating actively in all areas of human endeavor.
Reporters have noted that, "Mr Xi had seen the American dream up
close, having spent a couple of weeks in 1985 with a rural family in
Iowa. (He revisited them during a trip to America last year as
leader-in-waiting.)"
The concept of Chinese Dream is very similar to the idea of the "American Dream".
It stresses the importance of entrepreneurial spirit. It also glorifies
a generation of self-made men and women in post-reform China such as
those rural immigrants who moved to the urban centers and achieved
magnificent improvement in terms of their living standards and social
life. Chinese Dream can be interpreted as the collective consciousness
of Chinese people during the era of social transformation and economic
progress.
As an aspect of political thought in contemporary China, the
emergence of Chinese Dream indicates a diversion of political ideology
from egalitarianism to a relatively more libertarian individualist
approach.
It is worth noting that the concept is still based on collectivism
rather than individualism for it sees the subject of Chinese Dream as
the people of China as a whole instead of specific individuals.
The idea was put forward by the new CPC general secretary Xi Jinping
on 29 November 2012 and repeated by him on numerous important
occasions. The Communist Party's propaganda chief, Liu Yunshan, has
directed that the concept of the Chinese dream be incorporated into
school textbooks.
In an article for the Huffington Post, French sinologist David Gosset (高大伟) presented the idea that the Liyuan Style is an illustration of the China Dream.
China's new First Lady Peng Liyuan is at the intersection of what
Gosset calls "Modern China", "Civilizational China" and "Global China".
Huang Yongjun, the general manager of New Classic Press (UK)
Huang
Yongjun, the founder and general manager of New Classic Press (UK) is a
major advocator of the "China Dream" in the United Kingdom. The New
Classic Press is an effort to "explain China to the world" by Huang.
Interpretation
"Chinese Dream" in the South Lake Park, Panzhou, Guizhou, China, on 1 November 2019.
The Chinese Dream is vaguely defined, and has led to multiple interpretations describing the phrase's meaning.
Compared to the American Dream
Author Helen H. Wang was one of the first to connect the Chinese Dream with the American Dream. In her book The Chinese Dream,
Wang wrote: "The Chinese Dream, taking its title from the American
Dream, alluding to an easily identifiable concept..." Wang attempts to
demonstrate that the Chinese people have similar dreams as those of the
American people. "This new [Chinese] middle class," Wang wrote, "which
barely existed a decade ago, will reach the size of more than two
Americas in a decade or two. They number in the hundreds of millions,
with the same hopes and dreams that you and I have: to have a better
life, to give our children an even better life...". Wang has also
claimed that "Chinese people must define their own dream".
Sustainable development
The China Dream has been defined as sustainable development. Peggy Liu and the NGO JUCCCE coined the phrase "China Dream" as a movement based on sustainability, which was later popularized in China through a New York Times article and adopted by Xi Jinping. Pollution and food safety are popular concerns in China. Cities are frequently covered by smog and the country's rivers are polluted with industrial waste.
China's rising middle class is expected to increase by 500 million
people by 2025 and will continue to put a strain on the country's
dwindling resources. According to Liu, the Chinese Dream of sustainability can be achieved through the promotion of green technologies and the reduction of widespread conspicuous consumption. The Chinese Dream is a dream of a prosperous lifestyle reconciled with a sustainable lifestyle.
National renewal
The
Chinese Dream has been viewed as a call for China's rising
international influence. Xi Jinping refers to the dream as a form of
national rejuvenation.
Young Chinese are envious of America's cultural influence and hope that
China could one day rival the US as a cultural exporter.
Members of Chinese military support China's military development,
opining that the "strong-nation dream of a great revival of the Chinese
people" can only result from a "strong-army dream". Former United States Secretary of State John Kerry
has promoted the idea of a "Pacific Dream" to accommodate China's rise
through regional collaboration over shared interests like the
environment and economic growth.
Individual dreams
Many Chinese have interpreted the Chinese dream as the pursuit of individual dreams. Evan Osnos of The New Yorker
concludes that "Xi Jinping has sought to inspire his people by raising
the flag of the China Dream, but they have interpreted it as China Dreams—plural."
The Chinese Dream is defined according to an individual's personal
aspirations and desires, which may lead to "the proliferation of
1.3 billion China Dreams."
Sujian Guo and Baogang Guo argue, "To a great extent, the American
dream has been exported to China and has become the Chinese dream." But according to official party journal Qiushi, the Chinese Dream is not about individual glory, but about collective effort. Measuring public sentiment on Sina Weibo, Christopher Marquis and Zoe Yang of CivilChina.org found that the Chinese Dream refers more to the common goods bestowed by civil society than it does to individual achievements.
A main aim of the Chinese state propaganda is therefore the
construction of links between individual and national aspirations, which
also signifies the convergence of the values of the market economy and
state nationalism. This is evident in Chinese entertainment television.
In a genre of reality shows in public speaking, for example, contestants
frequently connect between their "dreams" and the triumph of China and
further emphasize the legitimacy of the Chinese Communist Party in
delivering a better future.
Economic and political reform
Some government officials and activists view the Chinese Dream as a need for economic and political reform.
Sustaining China's economic growth requires economic reform
encompassing urbanization, the reduction of government bureaucracy, and
weakening the power of special interests. Chinese liberals have defined the Chinese Dream as a dream of constitutionalism. Southern Weekly,
a liberal newspaper based in Guangzhou, attempted to publish an
editorial titled "The Chinese dream: a dream of constitutionalism" which
advocated the separation of powers, but was censored by the authorities. Both Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang
support economic reform, but have shied away from discussing political
reform. Premier Li has said that "But however deep the water may be, we
will wade into the water. This is because we have no alternative. Reform
concerns the destiny of our country and the future of our nation." According to official party sources, the Chinese Dream is the "essence of Socialism with Chinese characteristics".
In October 2013, Britain's Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osborne, described the Chinese Dream as a political reform that includes "rebalancing from investment to consumption".
