The Narrative of"Civilization"in History Textbooks from the Late Qing Dynasty to the Early Republic of China
At the beginning of the twentieth century,the Western-originated"civilization"narrative and the"evolution"thought had a revolutionary impact on the Chinese intellectual community.History textbooks used in primary and secondary schools in the late Qing and early Republic of China were also profoundly transformed by the"history of civilization"as a historiographic genre.The narrative of"civilization"promoted both intellectual change and justified the colonial aggression of the imperialist powers.These contradictions were also reflected in history textbooks.On the one hand,these textbooks were infiltrated by concepts such as"hierarchy of civilizations"and"struggle for survival",which implicitly endorsed Western colonial expansion and imperialism.On the other hand,driven by Chinese intellectuals'pursuit of national independence and civilizational self-awareness,these textbooks not only limited the scope of the"struggle for survival"but also emphasized the continuity of the spiritual tradition of Chinese civilization as well as the vision for a world with"multiple civilization".It was during this period that a civilization narrative with Chinese characteristics began to become an integral part of history textbooks in China.
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