The Theoretical Logic of the Staircase-Style Progressive Advancement of Chinese-Path Modernization

The Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Party [1]1 The Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the CPC, held in July 2024, focused on comprehensively deepening reform and advancing Chinese modernization. clearly stated: “Realizing socialist modernization is a historical process of staircase-style progressive advancement and continuous development and progress, requiring unremitting effort and successive struggle.” This important thesis profoundly reveals the inherent developmental laws of Chinese-path modernization, highlights our Party’s sober cognition, strategic resolve, and historical consciousness regarding modernization, and serves as an important guideline for grounding ourselves in the New Era, responding to new challenges and tests, and advancing the great cause. The multi-dimensional explication of the staircase-style progressive advancement of Chinese-path modernization is both a theoretical summary of historical experience and a strategic guide for moving toward the future. In the historical dimension, it demonstrates the political resolve to “paint the blueprint to the end, one term of leadership after another carrying on the work” [2]2 A common Chinese political idiom meaning that successive leaderships maintain continuity in long-term strategic plans.; in the theoretical dimension, it manifests a development philosophy of “practice at the level of principle” [3]3 A phrase from Marx’s “Introduction to a Contribution to the Critique of Hegel’s Philosophy of Right” (1844), referring to a revolutionary practice that aims at the highest human ideals rather than merely catching up with existing standards.; in the global dimension, it contributes a Chinese solution for creating a new form of human civilization. The three dimensions support each other, jointly constituting a complete picture of the staircase-style progressive advancement of Chinese-path modernization.

党的二十届四中全会明确指出：“实现社会主义现代化是一个阶梯式递进、不断发展进步的历史过程，需要不懈努力、接续奋斗。”这一重要论断深刻揭示了中国式现代化的内在发展规律，彰显了我们党对现代化建设的清醒认知、战略定力和历史自觉，是立足新发展阶段、应对新挑战新考验、推进伟大事业的重要遵循。中国式现代化阶梯式递进的多维阐释，既是对历史经验的理论总结，也是向未来迈进的战略指引。在历史维度上，它展现了一张蓝图绘到底、一任接着一任干的政治定力；在理论维度上，它彰显了“有原则高度的实践”发展哲学；在世界维度上，它贡献了开创人类文明新形态的中国方案。三个维度相互支撑，共同构成中国式现代化阶梯式递进的完整图景。

Historical Dimension: The Logical Trajectory of Staircase-Style Progressive Advancement

历史维度：阶梯式递进的逻辑轨迹

The historical dimension of staircase-style progressive advancement is first embodied in the clear thread of the historical process. From the First Five-Year Plan to the Fifteenth Five-Year Plan [4]4 China’s five-year plans run from the First (1953–1957) to the Fifteenth (2026–2030), the latter currently under formulation., our Party has led the people step by step, writing development miracles through successive struggle. This historical trajectory is not a mechanical linear repetition but a dialectical movement of spiral ascent, maintaining strategic resolve while adjusting strategies according to the times and circumstances. From an initial focus on the sphere of material production, to a gradual expansion into the multi-dimensional spaces of politics, economy, and culture, to covering the Five-Sphere Integrated Plan of politics, economy, culture, society, and ecology, and up to today’s all-round layout encompassing politics, economy, culture, society, ecology, security, and Party building, the connotation of Chinese-path modernization has continuously enriched and its extension has persistently expanded. This historical evolution profoundly responds to the transformation of the principal contradiction in society—from meeting material and cultural needs to pursuing needs for a better life—and the development concept has accordingly shifted from taking economic construction as the center to high-quality development, achieving a fundamental transformation in the mode of development.

阶梯式递进的历史维度，首先体现为历史进程的清晰脉络。从“一五”计划到“十五五”规划，我们党带领人民一步一个脚印，在接续奋斗中书写发展奇迹。这一历史轨迹不是机械的线性重复，而是螺旋上升的辩证运动，既保持战略定力，又因时因势调整方略。从最初关注物质生产领域，到逐步拓展至政治、经济、文化多维空间，再到涵盖政治、经济、文化、社会、生态五位一体，直至今天政治、经济、文化、社会、生态、安全、党建全方位布局，中国式现代化的内涵不断丰富，外延持续拓展。这一历史演进深刻回应了社会主要矛盾的转化，从满足物质文化需要到追求美好生活需要，发展理念随之从以经济建设为中心转向高质量发展，发展方式实现根本性转变。

The historical logic of staircase-style progressive advancement originates from the Chinese Communist Party’s profound grasp of China’s national conditions. Our Party has always been grounded in the basic reality of a huge population size, neither reaching for what is beyond its grasp nor clinging to old ways in advancing modernization, maintaining historical patience and adhering to steady progress. This historical process involves both quantitative accumulation and, even more, qualitative improvement. From solving the problem of food and clothing to achieving moderate prosperity in general, from moderate prosperity in all respects to common prosperity, the goal setting at each stage both surpasses the previous stage and lays the foundation for the next. Historical experience proves that it is precisely this staircase-style arrangement that has enabled China to avoid the violent social shocks and fractured development that have appeared in the modernization processes of certain late-developing countries. Staircase-style progressive advancement is the concentrated embodiment of the Chinese Communist Party’s historical initiative; it is not a passive adaptation to environmental changes but an active grasp of the general trend of history, exerting subjective initiative on the basis of respecting laws, and achieving the dialectical unity of historical inevitability and subjective choice.

阶梯式递进的历史逻辑，源于中国共产党对中国国情的深刻把握。我们党始终立足人口规模巨大的基本现实，在推进现代化进程中既不好高骛远，也不因循守旧，保持历史耐心，坚持稳中求进。这一历史过程既有量的积累，更有质的提升。从解决温饱到实现总体小康，从全面小康到共同富裕，每一阶段的目标设定都既超越前一阶段，又为下一阶段奠定基础。历史经验证明，正是这种阶梯式安排，使中国避免了某些后发国家在现代化进程中出现的剧烈社会震荡与断裂式发展。阶梯式递进是中国共产党历史主动精神的集中体现，它不是被动适应环境变化，而是主动把握历史大势，在尊重规律的基础上发挥主观能动性，实现历史必然性与主体选择性的辩证统一。

The advancement of Chinese-path modernization exhibits the salient feature of staircase-style progressive advancement. This process is rooted in China’s soil, conforms to China’s actual conditions, and manifests an irreversible historical trend and an unstoppable practical force. The reason it possesses such internal momentum stems from the Party leading the people in grasping the laws of development through long-term exploration, coalescing broad consensus, and forming a powerful joint force for sustained struggle. Staircase-style progressive advancement is not only the practical path of Chinese-path modernization but has also become a landmark concept and an important achievement of theoretical innovation, reflecting a profound grasp of the laws of modernization and the conscious construction of an independent knowledge system. This progressive process is not a simple superposition of stages but a systemic leap and holistic transformation, containing a two-way interaction between theory and practice. In the course of continuous deepening, Chinese-path modernization gradually achieves systematic construction and theoretical elaboration, presenting the process of constructing an independent knowledge system for Chinese-path modernization.

中国式现代化的推进呈现出阶梯式递进的显著特征，这一进程扎根于中国大地、契合中国实际，展现出不可逆转的历史趋势和势不可挡的实践力量。之所以具有这样的内在动能，源于党领导人民在长期探索中把握了发展规律，凝聚了广泛共识，形成了持续奋斗的强大合力。阶梯式递进不仅是中国式现代化的实践路径，更成为标识性概念和理论创新的重要成果，体现了对现代化规律的深刻把握和自主知识体系的自觉构建。这一递进过程不是简单的阶段叠加，而是系统性跃升、整体性变革，蕴含着理论与实践的双向互动。在不断深化中，中国式现代化逐步实现体系化构建、学理化阐释，呈现出中国式现代化自主知识体系构建的过程。

Theoretical Dimension: The Level of Principle of Staircase-Style Progressive Advancement

理论维度：阶梯式递进的原则高度

The theoretical dimension of staircase-style progressive advancement is first embodied in the creative application of Marxist development philosophy. Marx once asked in his “Introduction to a Contribution to the Critique of Hegel’s Philosophy of Right”: “Can Germany achieve a practice at the level of principle, that is, a revolution that will raise it not only to the official level of modern nations but to the human height that will be the immediate future of these nations?” [5]5 Marx, “Introduction to a Contribution to the Critique of Hegel’s Philosophy of Right,” in Marx-Engels Collected Works, vol. 3, p. 182. The staircase-style progressive advancement of Chinese-path modernization is precisely the response of the times to this idea. It does not simply copy the Western modernization path but, in the dialectical unity of catching up and transcending, explores a new path of civilization with a level of principle.

阶梯式递进的理论维度，首先体现为对马克思主义发展哲学的创造性运用。马克思在《〈黑格尔法哲学批判〉导言》中曾试问道：“德国能不能实现有原则高度的实践，即实现一个不但能把德国提高到现代各国的正式水准，而且提高到这些国家最近的将来要达到的人的高度的革命呢？”中国式现代化阶梯式递进正是对这一思想的时代回应，它不是简单复制西方现代化路径，而是在补课与超越的辩证统一中，探索一条具有原则高度的文明新路。

The theoretical innovation of staircase-style progressive advancement is embodied in the profound reconstruction of the mode of development. It breaks through the singular logic of Western modernization, organically unifying high-quality development, high-quality life, and high-efficiency governance, achieving coordination between effective qualitative improvement and reasonable quantitative growth. This theoretical height is not a castle in the air but originates from a profound summary of the experiences and lessons of development at home and abroad. Our Party draws lessons from the collapse of the Soviet Union, avoiding the social tearing caused by radical transformation; summarizes the predicament of dependent development in Latin American countries, adhering to an independent development path; and reflects on problems such as ecological crises and social fragmentation that emerged in the process of Western modernization, emphasizing the coordination of material civilization and cultural-ethical progress and the harmonious coexistence of humanity and nature. Staircase-style progressive advancement is a theoretical creation of the Chinese Communist Party grounded in China’s actual conditions and responding to the issues of the times. It is neither a simple imitation of Western theories nor a mechanical repetition of traditional dogmas, but an original achievement of integrating the basic tenets of Marxism with China’s specific realities and with the fine traditional Chinese culture—the Two Integrations [6]6 The Two Integrations refers to the integration of the basic tenets of Marxism with China’s specific realities and with the fine traditional Chinese culture, a key theoretical formulation under Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era..

阶梯式递进的理论创新，体现在对发展方式的深刻重构上。它突破了西方现代化的单一逻辑，将高质量发展、高品质生活、高效能治理有机统一，实现了质的有效提升与量的合理增长的协调。这一理论高度不是空中楼阁，而是源于对国内外发展经验教训的深刻总结。我们党吸取苏联解体的教训，避免激进转型带来的社会撕裂；总结拉美国家依附性发展的困境，坚持自主发展道路；反思西方现代化过程中出现的生态危机、社会分裂等问题，强调物质文明和精神文明相协调、人与自然和谐共生。阶梯式递进是中国共产党立足中国实际、回应时代课题的理论创造，它既不是对西方理论的简单模仿，也不是对传统教条的机械重复，而是马克思主义基本原理同中国具体实际、同中华优秀传统文化相结合的原创性成果。

The theoretical innovation of staircase-style progressive advancement transcends the singular pursuit of economic growth in traditional development theories, taking the comprehensive development of the person, the all-round progress of society, and the holistic elevation of civilization as core goals, representing a new direction for the development of human civilization. This theoretical consciousness enables Chinese-path modernization to both take root in China’s soil and respond to the common concerns of humanity, continuously enriching and perfecting itself through the dialectical interaction of theory and practice. The staircase-style progressive advancement of Chinese-path modernization is a staircase-style progressive advancement that follows the common values of all humanity, a staircase-style progressive advancement that creates a new form of human civilization. Chinese-path modernization is not ordinary practice but “practice at the level of principle.” Only by understanding Chinese-path modernization as a practice of civilization at the level of principle can one grasp its civilizational role and world-historical significance in the global context.

阶梯式递进的理论创新，超越了传统发展理论对经济增长的单一追求，将人的全面发展、社会全面进步、文明全面提升作为核心目标，代表着人类文明发展的新方向。这种理论自觉，使中国式现代化既能扎根中国大地，又能回应人类共同关切，在理论与实践的辩证互动中不断丰富完善。中国式现代化的阶梯式递进是遵循全人类共同价值的阶梯式递进，是创造人类文明新形态的阶梯式递进。中国式现代化不是一般的实践，而是“有原则高度的实践”。只有将中国式现代化理解为有原则高度的文明实践，才能理解其在全球语境中的文明角色和世界历史意义。

Global Dimension: The Civilizational Pattern of Staircase-Style Progressive Advancement

世界维度：阶梯式递进的文明格局

The global dimension of staircase-style progressive advancement is first embodied in the continuous expansion of its horizon. From national rejuvenation to a new form of human civilization, Chinese-path modernization increasingly manifests its world-historical significance. This expansion of horizon is not an abstract deduction of concepts but an inevitable result of the interaction between China and the world. The Chinese Communist Party has always contemplated and planned the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation within the context of changes unseen in a century, grounding itself in the domestic overall situation while keeping in mind the general trend of the world. The Chinese path of staircase-style progressive advancement breaks the basic pattern of the modern international order in which “the East is subordinate to the West” [7]7 A reference to the global hierarchy of the modern world system, as critiqued in dependency theory and world-systems analysis., providing late-developing countries with a new choice for non-dependent development. It proves that the path of modernization is not a one-way street; every country has the right to choose a development path suited to its own national conditions. The global significance of the staircase-style progressive advancement of Chinese-path modernization lies in its redefinition of the civilizational connotation of modernization, taking sovereign equality, inclusive and shared benefits, and opposition to the center-periphery dependency relationship as the basic principles of the international order, and giving a Chinese voice to the progress of human civilization.

阶梯式递进的世界维度，首先体现为视野的不断拓展。从民族复兴到人类文明新形态，中国式现代化日益彰显其世界历史意义。这一视野拓展不是抽象概念的推演，而是中国与世界互动的必然结果。中国共产党始终将中华民族伟大复兴置于世界百年未有之大变局中思考谋划，既立足国内大局，又胸怀天下大势。阶梯式递进的中国道路，打破了“东方从属于西方”的近代以来国际秩序基本格局，为后发国家提供了非依附性发展的新选择。它证明现代化道路不是单行道，每个国家都有权选择适合自身国情的发展路径。中国式现代化阶梯式递进的全球意义，在于它重新定义了现代化的文明内涵，将主权平等、普惠共享、反对中心—边缘依附关系作为国际秩序的基本原则，为人类文明进步发出中国声音。

The world contribution of stepwise progression is embodied in providing Chinese solutions to global development dilemmas. At present, human society faces severe challenges of peace deficits, development deficits, security deficits, and governance deficits, and the limitations of the Western modernization model are increasingly evident. While solving its own development problems, Chinese-path modernization also transforms the concept of stepwise development into international cooperation practice, following the principle of extensive consultation, joint contribution, and shared benefits, helping countries participating in the Belt and Road Initiative achieve connectivity of infrastructure, unimpeded trade, financial integration, and people-to-people bonds. [8]8 The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is a global infrastructure and economic cooperation strategy launched by China in 2013, focusing on connectivity and cooperation between Eurasian countries. Based on the systematic thinking of stepwise progression, it proposes the four major initiatives—the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative, the Global Civilization Initiative, and the Global Governance Initiative—contributing Chinese solutions to improving global governance. This contribution is not a one-way export but equal mutual learning; it both absorbs all outstanding achievements of human civilization and integrates the Chinese civilization’s concept of harmony and the global vision into global governance, promoting the building of a community with a shared future for mankind. The stepwise progression of Chinese-path modernization has enabled China to gradually transform from a participant in global governance into a contributor and leader. This role transformation is not about seeking hegemony but about assuming international responsibilities commensurate with its own capabilities, embodying the responsibility of a major country with a global vision.

阶梯式递进的世界贡献，体现在为全球发展困境提供中国方案。当前，人类社会面临和平赤字、发展赤字、安全赤字、治理赤字的严峻挑战，西方现代化模式的局限性日益显现。中国式现代化在解决自身发展问题的同时，又将阶梯式发展理念转化为国际合作实践，遵循共商共建共享原则，帮助共建“一带一路”国家实现设施联通、贸易畅通、资金融通、民心相通。立足阶梯式递进的系统思维，提出全球发展倡议、全球安全倡议、全球文明倡议、全球治理倡议四大倡议，为完善全球治理贡献中国方案。这种贡献不是单向输出，而是平等互鉴，既学习人类文明一切优秀成果，又将中华文明的和合理念、天下情怀融入全球治理，推动构建人类命运共同体。中国式现代化的阶梯式递进，使中国从全球治理的参与者逐步转变为贡献者、引领者，这种角色转变不是谋求霸权，而是承担与自身能力相适配的国际责任，体现胸怀天下的大国担当。

The civilizational significance of stepwise progression lies even more in the historical consciousness of creating a new form of human civilization. The Communist Party of China has always closely linked its own mission with human progress; stepwise progression is not only a strategic arrangement for realizing national rejuvenation but also a practical path for creating a new form of human civilization. This new form of civilization aims to transcend the inherent contradictions of capitalist civilization and achieve the coordination of material civilization and cultural-ethical progress, the harmonious coexistence of humanity and nature, and the unity of peaceful development and mutual benefit. It is not a simple replacement of Western civilization but a creative transcendence realized through civilizational exchange and mutual learning.

阶梯式递进的文明意义，更在于创造人类文明新形态的历史自觉。中国共产党始终将自身使命与人类进步紧密相连，阶梯式递进不仅是实现民族复兴的战略安排，也是创造人类文明新形态的实践路径。这一文明新形态旨在超越资本主义文明的内在矛盾，实现物质文明和精神文明相协调、人与自然和谐共生、和平发展与互利共赢相统一。它不是对西方文明的简单替代，而是在文明交流互鉴中实现的创造性超越。

(The authors are Dean and Professor of the School of Marxism at China West Normal University; researchers at the Sichuan Provincial Research Center for the Theoretical System of Socialism with Chinese Characteristics.)

（作者系西华师范大学马克思主义学院院长、教授；四川省中国特色社会主义理论体系研究中心研究员）