“The Chinese Dream” Through the Mirror of Modern Social Research

Abstract

The 18th Congress of the National Communist Party of China announced a new ideological slogan of the “great dream of China” that includes achievement of moderate prosperity for all Chinese citizens, rejuvenation of the nation and transformation of the country into the most powerful state of the world. The party rhetoric still relies on socialism and Karl Marx. The present article is a review of the modern Russian, Western and Chinese research devoted to the “Chinese Dream”. “The Chinese Dream” ideologeme is associated with another important ideologeme, “harmonious culture”. Modern Chinese researchers understand “harmonious culture” as a triunity of socialistic and Marxist values, traditional national Chinese culture (Taoism, Confucianism, and Buddhism), and modern global cultural practices and technologies. “Harmonious culture” is a brand new ideologeme the Chinese government wishes to operate in order to change the social consciousness of the Chinese middle class, distracting it from the problems of the rising social contradictions. The government draws academicians, thinkers, and politicians to the development of a new ideological language of “harmonious culture” believing that ordinary people cannot act as cultural policy subjects. The socialistic Chinese society is being transformed into a society oriented at the values uniting global cosmopolite capitalism and traditional national Chinese values. According to modern Chinese government, Chinese “harmonious” culture is intended to spread all around the world by both “soft” and “solid” means.