An Analysis of Deng Xiaoping’s Important Discourses on the Value Orientation, Model Selection and Civilizational Appeal of Chinese-Path Modernization

Deng Xiaoping conducted an in-depth analysis and comparison of the “Western model” and the “Soviet model” of modernization, profoundly summarized the painful lessons of the “underdevelopment” predicament encountered by late-developing countries in carrying out socialist modernization under capitalist conditions, and then, based on China’s national conditions, integrated the basic principles of Marxism-Leninism with China’s specific realities, putting forward the epochal proposition of “Chinese-style modernization,” leading the Party and the people to blaze a path of modernization with Chinese characteristics. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out, “Chinese-path modernization is a major achievement attained by our Party leading the people of all ethnic groups across the country through long-term exploration and practice, after untold hardships and at enormous cost.” As the first person to deeply contemplate and correctly handle the issue of “Chinese-style modernization” in the early period of reform and opening up, Deng Xiaoping made important historical contributions in the historical process of the Party leading the people in continuous exploration and practice of Chinese-path modernization.

邓小平深入分析并比较了现代化的“西方模式”和“苏联模式”，深刻总结了后发国家在资本主义条件下进行社会主义现代化建设所遭遇的“不发达”困境的惨痛教训，进而立足本国国情，把马克思列宁主义基本原理同中国具体实际相结合，提出“中国式的现代化”这一时代命题，带领党和人民开创了一条具有中国特色的现代化道路。习近平总书记指出，“中国式现代化是我们党领导全国各族人民在长期探索和实践中历经千辛万苦、付出巨大代价取得的重大成果”。邓小平作为改革开放初期深刻思考和正确处理“中国式现代化”问题的第一人，在党领导人民持续探索和实践中国式现代化的历史进程中作出了重要历史贡献。

I. Chinese-Path Modernization with the Value Orientation of Realizing Socialism, Embodying the Fundamental Tasks and Essential Requirements of Socialism, and Serving as the Criterion for Measuring the Success or Failure of Socialism

一、以实现社会主义、体现社会主义根本任务和本质要求、衡量社会主义得失成败标准为价值取向的中国式现代化

Deng Xiaoping further clarified the socialist value orientation of Chinese-path modernization, put forward the theory of the essence of socialism and the “three favorable” criteria for judgment, and initially and systematically answered the questions of what kind of socialism Chinese-path modernization adheres to and how to adhere to socialism, possessing distinct theoretical connotations and practical value.

邓小平进一步明确了中国式现代化的社会主义价值取向，提出了社会主义本质论和“三个有利于”的判断标准，初步系统地回答了中国式现代化坚持什么样的社会主义、怎样坚持社会主义的问题，具有鲜明的理论内涵和实践价值。

1. Modernization with a Socialist Value Orientation

1.具有社会主义价值取向的现代化

Deng Xiaoping systematically summarized the experiences and lessons of modernization construction at home and abroad, drew the historical conclusion that “only socialism can develop China,” and at the same time emphatically stressed that China must take the socialist road, but could not copy or mechanically follow the old path of socialist construction, holding that whether the essence of socialism can be correctly understood is the key to all issues of Chinese-path modernization. In the early days after the founding of New China, the primary issue facing China’s modernization construction was what kind of modernization to achieve, that is, the issue of the value orientation of modernization. Mao Zedong once used the historical judgment that “only socialism can save China” to indicate the value orientation that China’s revolution and construction should adhere to, revealing the correct direction for the progress of Chinese history. However, due to certain deviations in the Chinese Communists’ understanding of socialism, after the founding of New China, there had always been ideological misconceptions, namely, basically accepting Stalin’s concept of socialism, and even for a time regarding the Soviet model of socialism as the only correct model, thereby attaching its various drawbacks to socialism, which caused China’s modernization to suffer many setbacks and difficulties, to the point that some began to doubt the rationality of socialism. In response, Deng Xiaoping pointed out, “The socialist system we have established is a good system and must be upheld. We Marxists made revolution in the past precisely to strive for the lofty ideal of socialism and communism. Now that we are carrying out economic reform, we must still adhere to the socialist road and uphold the lofty ideal of communism; the younger generation in particular must understand this.” He always insisted that China’s modernization must follow and could only follow the socialist direction, and resolutely resisted those erroneous liberal trends of thought that attempted to lead China’s modernization toward capitalism. He also emphasized, “The four modernizations we are engaged in are socialist modernization, not any other kind of modernization. The purpose of all the policies we have adopted, such as opening up, invigorating the economy, and reform, is to develop the socialist economy.” Once socialism is abandoned, not only would the “food and clothing” problem of over a billion people be difficult to solve, but the entire country could also degenerate into an appendage of capitalism, and the dream of realizing Chinese-style modernization would also be dashed. These discourses embody the adherence to the socialist nature and direction of Chinese-path modernization and highlight the issue of what “kind” of modernization Chinese-path modernization is.

邓小平系统总结了国内外现代化建设的经验教训，得出“只有社会主义才能发展中国”的历史结论，同时突出强调，中国必须走社会主义道路，但又不能照抄照搬社会主义建设的老路，认为能否正确认识社会主义的本质才是中国式现代化全部问题的关键所在。新中国成立之初，中国的现代化建设面临的首要议题是实现什么样的现代化，即现代化的价值取向问题。毛泽东曾用“只有社会主义才能救中国”这样的历史论断来指明中国革命和建设所应坚持的价值取向，揭示了中国历史前进的正确方向。但因中国共产党人关于社会主义的认识存在某种偏差，新中国成立后，一直存在思想上的误区，即基本上接受了斯大林的社会主义观念，甚至一度把苏联的社会主义模式当作唯一正确的模式，进而将其种种弊端附加在社会主义上，这使得中国的现代化历经了不少挫折和困难，以致有人开始怀疑社会主义的合理性。对此，邓小平指出，“我们建立的社会主义制度是个好制度，必须坚持。我们马克思主义者过去闹革命，就是为社会主义、共产主义崇高理想而奋斗。现在我们搞经济改革，仍然要坚持社会主义道路，坚持共产主义的远大理想，年轻一代尤其要懂得这一点”。他始终坚持中国的现代化必须遵循也只能遵循社会主义方向，坚决抵制那些企图将中国现代化引向资本主义的自由主义错误思潮。他还强调，“我们搞四个现代化，是搞社会主义的现代化，不是搞别的现代化。我们采取的所有开放、搞活、改革等方面的政策，目的都是发展社会主义经济”，一旦抛弃社会主义，不仅十多亿人的“温饱”问题难以解决，而且整个国家都有可能沦为资本主义的附庸，实现中国式的现代化的梦想也将落空。这些论断体现坚持中国式现代化的社会主义性质和方向并凸显中国式现代化是“何种”现代化的问题。

2. Modernization Embodying the Fundamental Tasks and Essential Requirements of Socialism

2.体现社会主义根本任务和本质要求的现代化

Deng Xiaoping was soberly aware that abstractly discussing socialism

邓小平清醒地意识到，离开生产力的实际发展水平而抽象地谈论社会主义，脱离生产力的客观要求而片面强调变革生产关系，把本不属于社会主义本质的东西错误地当作社会主义的根本原则加以固守，这是社会主义遭受挫折的根本原因之一。邓小平关于社会主义本质的重要论述，既廓清了对社会主义认识上的种种迷雾，也突破了长期以来固守在社会主义认识上的传统观念，不仅为马克思主义者重新认识和理解社会主义拓展了思路，更是对中国式现代化应坚持什么样的社会主义的问题的有力应答。

In 1978, the convening of the Third Plenary Session of the 11th Central Committee of the CPC marked a new beginning for the CPC to explore and advance Chinese-path modernization from the essence of socialism. In the concrete practice of promoting reform and opening up and socialist modernization, Deng Xiaoping clearly stated, “The direction of our building socialism is completely correct, but what is socialism and how to build socialism are still being explored,” emphasizing that “we must emancipate our minds; we must even emancipate our minds on the question of what socialism is.” [1]1 The Third Plenary Session of the 11th Central Committee of the CPC, held in December 1978, marked the beginning of the reform and opening-up era and a shift away from Maoist class struggle as the central task. It can be seen that this discourse reflects the essence of socialism and the principles that should be upheld in understanding that essence. Deng Xiaoping first criticized certain erroneous understandings of socialism, putting forward views such as “poverty is not socialism,” “too slow development is not socialism,” “egalitarianism is not socialism,” and “a planned economy is not socialism,” exploring the proper appearance and prospect of socialism from multiple aspects through a “negative” approach. After long and in-depth reflection and summarization, in his Southern Talks in 1992, [2]2 The Four Modernizations (agriculture, industry, national defense, and science and technology) were a set of goals first proposed by Zhou Enlai in 1964 and revived by Deng Xiaoping after 1978. based on the historical effectiveness of integrating the basic principles of Marxism with China’s concrete realities and the practical experience of international socialism, and drawing on the 30 years of experience and lessons from China’s socialist construction, he put forward a theory of the essence of socialism of great theoretical and practical significance, namely, “The essence of socialism is to liberate and develop the productive forces, eliminate exploitation and polarization, and ultimately achieve common prosperity.” He pointed out clearly, “To uphold socialism, we must first get rid of poverty and backwardness, greatly develop the productive forces, and demonstrate the superiority of socialism over capitalism,” and “The goal of socialism is to achieve common prosperity for the entire people, not polarization.” From this, it can be seen that regarding the essence of socialism, he always emphasized two points: first, socialism must develop the productive forces at a faster pace than capitalist society, taking “liberating and developing the productive forces” as the fundamental task of socialism; second, socialism must follow a development path of common prosperity, taking “common prosperity” as the essential requirement of socialism. It is necessary to attach importance to both the improvement of production efficiency and the fairness of social distribution, thereby, on the basis of establishing the basic economic system of “public ownership playing a dominant role and diverse forms of ownership developing side by side” and the distribution system of “distribution according to work playing a dominant role and diverse modes of distribution coexisting,” fully mobilizing the enthusiasm and creativity of the people, promoting the development of the productive forces, and achieving the organic unity of efficiency and fairness.

1978年，党的十一届三中全会的召开标志着中国共产党从社会主义的本质出发探索推进中国式现代化的崭新开端。在推进改革开放和社会主义现代化建设的具体实践中，邓小平明确提出“我们建设社会主义的方向是完全正确的，但什么叫社会主义，怎样建设社会主义，还在摸索之中”，强调“不解放思想不行，甚至于包括什么叫社会主义这个问题也要解放思想”。可见，这一论述体现了社会主义的本质以及理解其本质所应秉持的原则。邓小平首先批判了关于社会主义的某些错误认识，提出“贫穷不是社会主义”“发展太慢不是社会主义”“平均主义不是社会主义”“计划经济不等于社会主义”等观点，以“否定”的方式从多方面探讨了社会主义应有的面貌与图景。经过长期深入的思考总结，在1992年南方谈话中，邓小平依据马克思主义基本原理同中国具体实际相结合的历史成效以及国际社会主义的实践经验，并基于我国社会主义建设事业30年的经验教训，提出了具有重大理论与实践意义的社会主义本质论，即“社会主义的本质，是解放生产力，发展生产力，消灭剥削，消除两极分化，最终达到共同富裕”。他鲜明指出，“坚持社会主义，首先要摆脱贫穷落后状态，大大发展生产力，体现社会主义优于资本主义的特点”，“社会主义的目的就是要全国人民共同富裕，不是两极分化”。由此看出，关于社会主义的本质他始终强调两点：一是社会主义要用快于资本主义社会的速度发展生产力，把“解放和发展生产力”作为社会主义的根本任务；二是社会主义要走共同富裕的发展道路，把“共同富裕”作为社会主义的本质要求。既要重视生产效率的提高，又要重视社会分配的公平，从而在“公有制为主体、多种所有制经济共同发展”的基本经济制度和“按劳分配为主体、多种分配方式并存”的分配制度确立的基础上，充分调动人民群众的积极性和创造性，促进生产力的发展，实现效率与公平的有机统一。

3. The Modernization of the Criteria for Measuring the Success or Failure of Socialism

3.衡量社会主义得失成败标准的现代化

In the Southern Talks, while putting forward the theory of the essence of socialism, Deng Xiaoping also proposed three criteria for judgment, [3]3 The Four Cardinal Principles are a set of political constraints introduced by Deng Xiaoping in 1979 to define the boundaries of permissible political discourse during reform and opening up. solving the problem of what standards to follow, that is, how to build socialism, and providing a basic guideline for adhering to the socialist value orientation of Chinese-path modernization.

在南方谈话中，邓小平在提出社会主义本质论的同时，还提出三条判断标准，解决了按照什么标准，即怎样建设社会主义的问题，为坚持中国式现代化的社会主义价值取向提供了基本遵循。

Deng Xiaoping, based on the situation at the time that “reform and opening up could not take a step forward, people dared not break new ground, and in the final analysis they were afraid that too many capitalist elements would appear and that the road of capitalism would be taken. The crux of the matter was the question of whether something was ‘socialist’ or ‘capitalist’,” put forward the “three favorable” criteria in his Southern Talks, namely, “whether it is favorable to developing the productive forces of the socialist society, whether it is favorable to increasing the overall national strength of the socialist country, and whether it is favorable to raising the people’s living standards.” [1]1 The Third Plenary Session of the 11th Central Committee of the CPC, held in December 1978, marked the beginning of the reform and opening-up era and a shift away from Maoist class struggle as the central task. Among these, the first “favorable” is the Marxist criterion of productive forces. The development of productive forces is the prerequisite and foundation for social progress. Placing the criterion of productive forces first conforms to the basic principles of historical materialism concerning productive forces and relations of production, and at the same time clarifies the primary task of Chinese-path modernization. This was proposed by Deng Xiaoping through combining the Marxist theory of productive forces with China’s development reality. The second “favorable” is an embodiment of the unity of the Marxist criterion of productive forces and the socialist value criterion. Overall national strength is a basic indicator for measuring a country’s economic and social development and the living standards of its people. The third “favorable” is the Marxist socialist value criterion. Deng Xiaoping placed the ultimate goal of China’s socialist modernization on raising the people’s living standards, which conforms to the Marxist mass view of history and highlights the fundamental purpose of Chinese-path modernization. Deng Xiaoping emphasized that the degree of increase in overall national strength is consistent with the level of development of productive forces, and that the prosperity and strength of the country are closely related to the people’s good life. The scientific thesis on the “three favorable” criteria proposed by Deng Xiaoping organically integrates the development of productive forces, the future and destiny of socialism, and the people’s livelihood, fundamentally resolving the conceptual issues that had at that time constrained people’s thinking and interfered with their work.

邓小平基于当时“改革开放迈不开步子，不敢闯，说来说去就是怕资本主义的东西多了，走了资本主义道路。要害是姓‘资’还是姓‘社’的问题”，在南方谈话中提出了“三个有利于”判断标准，即“是否有利于发展社会主义社会的生产力，是否有利于增强社会主义国家的综合国力，是否有利于提高人民的生活水平”。其中，第一个“有利于”是马克思主义的生产力标准。生产力的发展是社会进步的前提和基础，将生产力标准置于首位，符合唯物史观生产力与生产关系的基本原理，同时也明确了中国式现代化的首要任务，是邓小平将马克思主义生产力理论同中国发展实际相结合提出的。第二个“有利于”是马克思主义的生产力标准和社会主义价值标准相统一的体现。综合国力是衡量一个国家经济社会发展状况和人民生活水平的基本指标。第三个“有利于”是马克思主义的社会主义价值标准。邓小平将中国社会主义现代化建设的落脚点放在提高人民生活水平上，符合马克思主义群众史观，突出中国式现代化的根本目的。邓小平强调综合国力的提高程度与生产力的发展高度是一致的，而国家的兴旺发达与人民的美好生活密切相关。邓小平提出的关于“三个有利于”判断标准的科学论断，把发展生产力、社会主义的前途命运和人民群众的生活有机结合起来，从根本上解决了当时束缚人们思想、干扰人们工作的观念问题。

II. Chinese-Path Modernization with Model Selection Reflecting Chinese Characteristics, Historical Position, and Basic Principles

二、以体现中国特色、历史方位和基本原则为模式选择的中国式现代化

Deng Xiaoping believed that Chinese-path modernization must be compatible with the distinctive features of China’s economy and society, and coordinated with the historical stage of China’s socialist construction. It must not only highlight the country’s own characteristics but also formulate a development model based on China’s actual national conditions. This reflects the unity of following the general laws of modernization development and deploying a modernization development strategy according to China’s specific reality. He was also the first to explicitly propose the basic principles that Chinese-path modernization must adhere to.

邓小平认为，中国式的现代化必须与中国经济社会的鲜明特征相适应，与中国社会主义建设所处的历史阶段相协调，既凸显本国特色，也要根据中国国情实际制定发展模式，体现了遵循现代化发展的一般规律与根据中国具体实际部署现代化发展战略的特殊规律的统一，并首次明确提出中国式现代化必须坚持的基本原则。

1. The Chinese Characteristics Manifested by Chinese-Path Modernization

1.中国式现代化所彰显的中国特色

Mao Zedong once pointed out, “It is necessary to combine the universal truth of Marxism-Leninism with the concrete reality of China’s socialist construction… as well and as closely as possible,” so that it bears Chinese characteristics in every manifestation. [2]2 The Four Modernizations (agriculture, industry, national defense, and science and technology) were a set of goals first proposed by Zhou Enlai in 1964 and revived by Deng Xiaoping after 1978. Under the new historical conditions, Deng Xiaoping reasonably inherited this thought of Mao Zedong, pointing out that engaging in construction must be combined with the country’s specific reality, and that what we are pursuing is modernization with Chinese characteristics. Modernization with Chinese characteristics must consider at least two points: First, the foundation is weak. He believed that although after the founding of New China, China’s productive forces had achieved

毛泽东曾指出，“必须把马克思列宁主义的普遍真理同中国社会主义建设的具体实际……尽可能好一些地结合起来”，使之在每一表现中带着中国的特性。在新的历史条件下，邓小平合理继承了毛泽东这一思想，指出搞建设必须结合本国具体实际，我们搞的是有中国特色的现代化。而有中国特色的现代化至少有两点必须予以考虑：一是底子薄。他认为，新中国成立后，虽然我国的生产力得到了长足发展，在工农业和科学技术方面也取得了一定成就，但仍未摆脱国家经济基础“底子薄”的现实境遇。“六十年代末期到七十年代这十一二年，我们同世界的差距拉得太大了。这十多年，正是世界蓬勃发展的时期，世界经济和科技的进步，不是按年来计算，甚至于不是按月来计算，而是按天来计算。”由于种种原因，中国的建设进程延误了，在20世纪80年代初，中国的工业、农业和科技水平相较于发达国家落后了二三十年，大大削弱了实现社会主义现代化的支撑力。二是人口多、耕地少。他指出，中国人口众多，其中有80%的人口分布在农村，且大多数农民生活水平还在贫困线以下，因此，要“增加人民的收入很不容易，短期内要摆脱贫困落后状态很不容易”。耕地少，人口多，特别是农民多，这就成为中国现代化建设必须考虑的特点。邓小平强调，农业的稳定发展，事关现代化建设大局的稳定，是整个国民经济快速健康发展的重要保障，是整个国家现代化的基础性工程，“没有农村的稳定就没有全国的稳定，没有农民的小康就没有全国人民的小康，没有农业的现代化就没有整个国民经济的现代化”。这里所提及的“小康”社会是实现中国式现代化的阶段性目标，也是建成社会主义现代化强国的必经阶段，这使得中国式现代化具有更切实际的发展布局和系统规划。基于此，邓小平提出了有中国特色的现代化思想。

2. The Historical Juncture of Chinese-Path Modernization

2.中国式现代化所处的历史方位

Based on the practical exploration of socialism with Chinese characteristics, Deng Xiaoping adhered to seeking truth from facts and emancipating the mind, creatively putting forward the major thesis that China is in and will long remain in the primary stage of socialism. This thesis fully assessed and reasonably judged the historical juncture in which China finds itself, and it is the basic guideline for the Communist Party of China to explore and answer a series of theoretical and practical questions concerning Chinese-path modernization.

基于对中国特色社会主义的实践探索，邓小平坚持解放思想、实事求是，创造性地提出我国处于并将长期处于社会主义初级阶段的重大论断。这一论断对中国所处的历史方位进行了充分估计和合理判断，是中国共产党探索和回答中国式现代化一系列理论和现实问题的基本遵循。

Deng Xiaoping repeatedly emphasized that Chinese-path modernization must be a modernization that conforms to China’s national conditions and proceeds from China’s actual situation. He pointed out, “In the past, when we carried out the democratic revolution, we had to suit it to China’s conditions and take the path of encircling the cities from the countryside, a path opened up by Comrade Mao Zedong. Now, when we are engaged in construction, we must also suit it to China’s conditions and blaze a path of Chinese-style modernization.” [4]4 “The ancestors cannot be abandoned” (老祖宗不能丢) is a colloquial expression meaning that the fundamental tenets of Marxism-Leninism and Mao Zedong Thought must not be discarded. And our greatest national condition and reality is the stage of development in which socialism finds itself. In his *Critique of the Gotha Programme*, Marx put forward the doctrine of the stages of communist development, pointing out that communist society will go through a process of development from the “first stage” to the “higher stage,” but he did not specify what stages of development the first stage of communism would undergo. After the founding of New China, when summing up the Soviet experience of “immediately building socialism,” Mao Zedong also put forward the two stages of socialism: “underdeveloped socialism” and “relatively developed socialism,” with the latter stage possibly requiring a longer time than the former. Deng Xiaoping inherited and developed Marxist thought on the division of the stages of development of communism and socialism, proposing that “socialism itself is the primary stage of communism, and China is in the primary stage of socialism, that is, the stage of underdevelopment,” [5]5 The “three-sphere plan” refers to the strategic layout of economic, political, and cultural construction, formally adopted by the Party in the 1980s. and that this primary stage will last at least one hundred years. At the same time, he also believed that China already possesses the conditions to transcend the stage of full development of capitalism and is in the primary stage of socialism; this is the starting point of Chinese-path modernization. If one fails to recognize or denies this, and engages in so-called making up for the lessons of capitalism, we will fall into the theoretical error of the Right. Furthermore, because there is still a considerable gap between China’s level of productive forces and that of Western developed countries, the stage of fundamentally changing the state of economic and cultural backwardness cannot be skipped; it is necessary to go through a very long period to develop the highly developed productive forces that socialism should possess. Only by recognizing the arduousness and protractedness of this stage can we shake off the “Left” impatience and rashness. This not only conformed to the actual situation of China’s economic backwardness and unbalanced development at the beginning of reform and opening up, but also fully considered the complexity of realizing Chinese-path modernization.

邓小平多次强调中国式现代化必须是符合中国国情、从中国实际出发的现代化。他指出，“过去搞民主革命，要适合中国情况，走毛泽东同志开辟的农村包围城市的道路。现在搞建设，也要适合中国情况，走出一条中国式的现代化道路”，而我们最大的国情和实际，就是社会主义所处的发展阶段。马克思在《哥达纲领批判》中曾提出共产主义发展阶段的学说，指出共产主义社会将经历“第一阶段”到“高级阶段”的发展过程，但对于共产主义的第一阶段会经历哪些发展阶段并未言明。新中国成立后，毛泽东在总结苏联“立即建成社会主义”经验时，也提出了社会主义分为“不发达的社会主义”和“比较发达的社会主义”的两个阶段，后一阶段可能比前一阶段需要更长的时间。邓小平继承并发展了马克思主义关于共产主义和社会主义发展阶段划分的思想，提出“社会主义本身是共产主义的初级阶段，而我们中国又处在社会主义的初级阶段，就是不发达的阶段”，这一初级阶段至少要经历一百年的时间。同时，他还认为，我国已具备超越资本主义充分发展阶段的条件，处于社会主义的初级阶段，这是中国式现代化的出发点，如果认识不到或否认这一点，去搞所谓的补资本主义的课，我们就会陷入右的理论误区。此外，由于我国的生产力水平与西方发达国家还存在较大差距，因此，从根本上改变经济文化落后状态的阶段是不能逾越的，必须经历一个很长的时期去发展社会主义应具备的高度发达的生产力，只有认识到这一阶段的艰巨性和长期性，我们才能摆脱“左”的急躁冒进情绪。这既符合改革开放之初我国经济落后和发展不平衡的实际情况，而且充分考虑了实现中国式现代化的复杂性。

3. The Basic Principles That Chinese-Path Modernization Must Uphold

3.中国式现代化必须坚持的基本原则

The Third Plenary Session of the 11th Central Committee of the Party [1]1 The Third Plenary Session of the 11th Central Committee of the CPC, held in December 1978, marked the beginning of the reform and opening-up era and a shift away from Maoist class struggle as the central task. made the major decision to shift the focus of the entire Party’s work to economic construction as the center and to implement the great decision of reform and opening up, guiding the entire people toward the goal of achieving the “Four Modernizations” [2]2 The Four Modernizations (agriculture, industry, national defense, and science and technology) were a set of goals first proposed by Zhou Enlai in 1964 and revived by Deng Xiaoping after 1978. on the fundamental principle of emancipating the mind and seeking truth from facts. However, in the process of bringing order out of chaos, there was still ideological confusion within the Party regarding the understanding of certain issues, especially concerning the Party’s basic line for the primary stage of socialism. In response to this situation, at the Party’s theoretical work conference in March 1979, Deng Xiaoping for the first time explicitly proposed and elaborated on the Four Cardinal Principles [3]3 The Four Cardinal Principles are a set of political constraints introduced by Deng Xiaoping in 1979 to define the boundaries of permissible political discourse during reform and opening up.: “First, we must uphold the socialist path; second, we must uphold the dictatorship of the proletariat; third, we must uphold the leadership of the Communist Party; and fourth, we must uphold Marxism-Leninism and Mao Zedong Thought.” Regarding the content of the Four Cardinal Principles, the Communist Party of China had already made judgments during the period of socialist revolution and construction, but it was Deng Xiaoping’s important contribution to present them as a holistic concept to the entire Party and to systematically elaborate their profound connotations and internal logical relationships. He pointed out that the Four Cardinal Principles each have their own emphasis, yet they interpenetrate, are interdependent, and form an indivisible unified whole. The Four Cardinal Principles first require upholding socialism; the core of the four upholds is upholding the Party’s leadership; the people’s democratic dictatorship cannot be abandoned, and upholding socialism necessarily means upholding the dictatorship of the proletariat; Marxism-Leninism and Mao Zedong Thought are the guide to action, and the ancestors cannot be abandoned. [4]4 “The ancestors cannot be abandoned” (老祖宗不能丢) is a colloquial expression meaning that the fundamental tenets of Marxism-Leninism and Mao Zedong Thought must not be discarded. He also emphasized that throughout the entire process of socialist modernization, the Four Cardinal Principles must always be upheld, “If any one of these four cardinal principles is shaken, the entire socialist cause and the entire modernization cause will be shaken.” At the same time, Deng Xiaoping actively promoted the establishment of the Four Cardinal Principles in appropriate legal forms, fixing the adherence to the Four Cardinal Principles as an important content in the fundamental laws of the Party and the state, thereby strengthening the authority of the Four Cardinal Principles as the political bottom line to be jointly upheld by the entire Party and the people of all ethnic groups across the country, effectively consolidating the political foundation of Chinese-path modernization, and greatly enhancing the cohesion of the entire Party and the people of all ethnic groups across the country.

党的十一届三中全会作出把全党工作的重点转移到以经济建设为中心，实行改革开放的伟大决策上来的重大决定，以解放思想、实事求是的根本原则引导全国人民朝着实现“四个现代化”的目标前进。但在拨乱反正的过程中，党内在一些问题的认知上尤其是关于社会主义初级阶段党的基本路线还存在着思想混乱状况。针对这种情况，1979年3月党的理论工作务虚会上，邓小平首次明确提出并阐述了四项基本原则，“第一，必须坚持社会主义道路；第二，必须坚持无产阶级专政；第三，必须坚持共产党的领导；第四，必须坚持马列主义、毛泽东思想”。关于四项基本原则的内容，中国共产党在社会主义革命和建设时期早有论断，但是将其作为一个整体性概念鲜明地提交全党并系统阐述其深刻内涵和内在逻辑关系则是邓小平的重要贡献。他指出，四项基本原则各有侧重，又相互贯通、相互依存，是不可分割的统一整体。四项基本原则首先要求坚持社会主义；四个坚持的核心，是坚持党的领导；人民民主专政不能丢，坚持社会主义就必须坚持无产阶级专政；马列主义、毛泽东思想是行动指南，老祖宗不能丢啊。他还强调，在整个社会主义现代化建设过程中，必须始终坚持四项基本原则，“如果动摇了这四项基本原则中的任何一项，那就动摇了整个社会主义事业，整个现代化建设事业”。同时，邓小平还积极推动四项基本原则以适当的法律形式加以确定，将坚持四项基本原则作为重要内容在党和国家的根本大法中得以固定，强化了四项基本原则作为全党全国各族人民共同坚守的政治底线的权威性，有力地巩固了中国式现代化的政治基础，极大提升了全党全国各族人民的凝聚力。

III. Chinese-Path Modernization with the Progressive Leap of Material Civilization, Cultural-Ethical Progress, Institutional Civilization, and Human Civilization as Its Civilizational Aspiration

三、以实现物质文明、精神文明、制度文明、人的文明的递进跃升为文明诉求的中国式现代化

The goal of Chinese-path modernization proposed by Deng Xiaoping is a goal system that includes the comprehensive development of material civilization, cultural-ethical progress, institutional civilization, and human civilization. He emphasized the construction of material civilization, insisting on taking economic construction as the center, vigorously developing social productive forces, achieving coordinated development of material civilization and cultural-ethical progress, and promoting the overall progress of society. At the same time, he pointed out that while greatly improving social productive forces, it is necessary to reform and improve the socialist economic system and political system, develop a high degree of socialist democracy and a complete socialist legal system, and accelerate the construction of institutional civilization. On the basis of the coordinated development of material civilization and cultural-ethical progress, with institutional civilization as a guarantee, Chinese-path modernization takes human civilization as its value orientation, that is, to achieve the comprehensive development of the individual.

邓小平提出的中国式现代化目标是一个包含着物质文明、精神文明、制度文明和人的文明全面发展的目标体系。他注重物质文明建设，强调坚持以经济建设为中心，大力发展社会生产力，做到物质文明和精神文明协调发展，促进社会的全面进步。同时，他指出，要在大幅度提高社会生产力的同时，改革和完善社会主义的经济制度和政治制度，发展高度的社会主义民主和完备的社会主义法制，加快制度文明建设。在物质文明与精神文明协调发展、制度文明作为保障的基础上推进中国式现代化以人的文明为价值旨归，即实现人的全面发展。

1. The Coordinated Development of Material Civilization and Cultural-Ethical Progress Is the Foundation

1.物质文明和精神文明协调发展是基础

Mao Zedong attached great importance to the coordination and comprehensiveness of social development and made many important contributions at both the theoretical and practical levels, but due to the limitations of the historical conditions at the time, this could not be sustained over the long term. After reform and opening up, Deng Xiaoping, combining the practice of the new period of modernization and the new situations and problems that emerged, inherited and enriched Mao Zedong’s thought on the coordinated and comprehensive development of society. He also pointed out that the socialist country we want to build must not only have a high degree of material civilization but also a high degree of cultural-ethical progress. In other words, Chinese-path modernization requires both the satisfaction of material life and the enrichment of the spiritual realm; it is a process of comprehensive social progress based on a developed economy.

毛泽东对社会发展的协调性和全面性给予了高度重视，在理论和实践层面作出了诸多重要贡献，但因受到当时历史条件的局囿限制，未能长期坚持下去。改革开放后，邓小平结合现代化建设新时期的实践以及出现的新情况新问题，继承并丰富了毛泽东关于社会协调全面发展的思想。他还指出，我们要建设的社会主义国家，不但要有高度的物质文明，而且要有高度的精神文明。换言之，中国式现代化既要物质生活的满足，也要精神境界的充实，是以经济发达为基础的社会全面进步的发展过程。

In the early period of reform and opening up, while China achieved remarkable results in economic construction, problems such as a certain degree of deterioration in social atmosphere and spiritual pollution also emerged, affecting the smooth progress of socialist modernization. In response to this situation, Deng Xiaoping pointed out that in promoting socialist modernization, it is necessary to always attach importance to and handle the relationship between material civilization and cultural-ethical progress, adhere to “grasping both civilizations” together, “grasp both aspects and grasp both firmly,” and continuously consolidate the material and ideological foundations of Chinese-path modernization. Socialism is a society with a high degree of development in both material civilization and cultural-ethical progress. The degree of affluence of material civilization is measured by the development status of productive forces in the primary stage of socialism. In the process of ensuring that the people move from basic subsistence to moderate prosperity, the enrichment of cultural-ethical progress cannot be ignored. This is the important thesis of “grasp both aspects and grasp both firmly” proposed by Deng Xiaoping. Only when material civilization and cultural-ethical progress develop in a coordinated and organic unity can the significant advantages of the socialist system be fully realized, thereby serving the construction of socialist modernization. This strategic planning of coordinating the coordinated development of material civilization and cultural-ethical progress and comprehensively promoting social development has had a profound impact on the Party’s leadership of the people in continuously exploring and practicing Chinese-path modernization. With the gradual advancement of reform and opening up and the rapid development of the economy and society, the Party’s understanding of the laws of comprehensive social progress has continuously deepened, shifting from the basic policy of “grasping both aspects” to the strategic layout of the “three-sphere plan” [5]5 The “three-sphere plan” refers to the strategic layout of economic, political, and cultural construction, formally adopted by the Party in the 1980s. and the “four-sphere plan,” [6]6 The “four-sphere plan” adds social construction to the three-sphere plan, adopted around the time of the 16th National Congress of the CPC in 2002. and finally to the “five-sphere integrated plan” [7]7 The “five-sphere integrated plan” adds ecological civilization construction to the four-sphere plan, formally established at the 18th National Congress of the CPC in 2012. of economic construction, political construction, cultural construction, social construction, and ecological civilization construction with the New Era as the historical orientation, pushing the cause of socialist modernization to a new stage.

改革开放初期，我国在经济建设取得显著成就的同时，也出现了某种程度的社会风气恶化与精神污染等问题，影响了社会主义现代化建设的顺利推进。针对这一情况，邓小平指出，在推进社会主义现代化过程中要始终重视和处理好物质文明和精神文明的关系，坚持“两个文明”一起抓，“两手抓、两手都要硬”，不断夯实中国式现代化的物质基础和思想基础。社会主义是物质文明和精神文明高度发达的社会。物质文明的富裕程度以社会主义初级阶段生产力的发展状况为衡量标准，在保证人民实现基本温饱到奔向小康的进程中，精神文明的充实同样不容忽视，这就是邓小平提出的“两手抓，两手都要硬”的重要论断。只有物质文明和精神文明协调发展、有机统一，才能充分发挥社会主义制度的显著优势，从而为社会主义现代化建设服务。这种统筹物质文明与精神文明协调发展、全面综合地推进社会发展的战略谋划，对党领导人民持续探索和实践中国式现代化产生了深远影响。随着改革开放的逐步推进以及经济社会的快速发展，党对社会全面进步的认识规律不断深化，开始从“两手抓”的基本方针向“三位一体”“四位一体”的战略布局转变，直至以新时代为历史方位的经济建设、政治建设、文化建设、社会建设以及生态文明建设的“五位一体”总体布局，将社会主义现代化建设事业推向崭新阶段。

2. Institutional Civilization Is the Guarantee

2.制度文明是保障

After reform and opening up, Deng Xiaoping clearly recognized the importance of institutional civilization in Chinese-path modernization and proposed starting from institutional construction, on the basis of absorbing the positive factors of other systems, to uphold and improve the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics. Important goals of socialist modernization should include the socialist economic system, the political system, democratic legal system, and socialist cultural-ethical progress. Deng Xiaoping’s thought on the construction of institutional civilization not only enriched and developed Marxist institutional theory but also played an important role in promoting the upholding and improvement of the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics and the deepening of the modernization of the national governance system and governance capacity.

改革开放以后，邓小平清晰地认识到制度文明在中国式现代化中的重要性，提出了从制度建设入手，在吸收人类其他制度积极因素的基础上，坚持和完善中国特色社会主义制度。社会主义现代化的重要目标应包括社会主义经济制度、政治制度、民主法制和社会主义精神文明等方面。邓小平关于制度文明建设的思想不仅丰富和发展了马克思主义制度理论，还对坚持和完善中国特色社会主义制度、深入推进国家治理体系和治理能力现代化发挥着重要推动作用。

First, it discusses the importance of institutional civilization construction. After the founding of New China, although our country established the socialist system, the current systems of the Party and the state were not perfect. This problem was relatively disadvantageous for consolidating and building socialism. After reform and opening up, Deng Xiaoping, on the basis of summing up the positive and negative historical experience of our country’s socialist system construction, starting from the actual national conditions, pointed out that the system problem concerns whether the Party and the state can avoid changing their nature, whether socialist democracy can be realized, and whether socialist modernization can be smoothly advanced. This important discourse, from the stability of the Party’s and the state’s position to the realization of the people’s right to be masters of the country, from the completion of the phased tasks of a moderately prosperous society to the advancement of the goals of socialist modernization, reflects the safeguarding and stabilizing functions of institutional civilization. Second, it clearly points out the key to institutional civilization construction. Deng Xiaoping emphasized, “Without the Party’s leadership, there would be no socialist system,” and upholding and improving the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics must adhere to the leadership of the Communist Party of China. Without the Party’s leadership, the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics would lose its backbone and would be unable to exert the institutional advantage of “concentrating resources to accomplish major tasks.” It can be seen that the Party’s leadership plays a core leading role, which is also a prominent feature demonstrating the superiority of the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics. Third, it puts forward the fundamental task of institutional civilization construction. Deng Xiaoping believed that continuously improving the basic political system and various specific systems of socialism with Chinese characteristics, and realizing the standardization and rule-of-law-based governance of socialist democratic politics, are the fundamental tasks of socialist system construction, including reforming and improving the people’s congress system, improving the system of multiparty cooperation and political consultation under the leadership of the Communist Party of China, deepening the reform of the cadre and personnel system, and vigorously strengthening legal system construction, and so on. From the macro framework to the deployment of specific systems, this allows the system construction to be coordinated, orderly, and efficiently operated, exerting its due functions, and making it a source of strength for the smooth promotion of institutional civilization.

首先，论述了制度文明建设的重要性。新中国成立后，我国虽然确立了社会主义制度，但党和国家现行制度并不完善。这一问题对于巩固和建设社会主义而言较为不利。改革开放后，邓小平在总结我国社会主义制度建设正反两方面历史经验的基础上，从现实国情出发，指出制度问题关系党和国家能否不变色，关系社会主义民主能否实现，关系社会主义现代化能否顺利推进。这一重要论述从党和国家立场的稳固到人民当家作主权利的实现，从小康社会阶段性任务的完成到社会主义现代化建设目标的推进，体现出制度文明的保障性和稳定性功能。其次，明确点出制度文明建设的关键。邓小平强调，“没有党的领导也就不会有社会主义制度”，坚持和完善中国特色社会主义制度必须坚持中国共产党的领导。离开党的领导，中国特色社会主义制度就没有了主心骨，就无法发挥“集中力量办大事”的制度优势。可以看出，党的领导发挥着核心引领作用，这也是彰显中国特色社会主义制度优势的显著特征。再次，提出制度文明建设的根本任务。邓小平认为，不断完善中国特色社会主义的基本政治制度和各项具体制度，实现社会主义民主政治的规范化、法治化，是社会主义制度建设的根本任务，包括改革和完善人民代表大会制度、改进共产党领导的多党合作和政治协商制度、深化干部人事制度改革、大力加强法制建设，等等。从宏观架构到具体制度的部署，让制度建设协调有序、高效运转，发挥应有功能，使之成为制度文明得以顺利推动的力量源泉。

3. Realizing Human Civilization Is the Goal

3.实现人的文明是目标

Whether it is material civilization, cultural-ethical progress, or institutional civilization, the ultimate goal is to realize human civilization. Continuously raising the level of civilization in human development and realizing the comprehensive development of human beings is a consistent proposition of Marxism, which in the development requirements of the current stage is prominently manifested as “the modernization of human beings.” Marx believed that the state of human development under the capitalist system is deformed, and proposed that human development should be a comprehensive and free development. Deng Xiaoping was aware of the importance of the human factor in the process of realizing Chinese-path modernization. Although he did not directly propose the concept of the modernization of human beings, his theory and practice consciously promoted the advancement of the modernization of human beings.

无论是物质文明、精神文明，还是制度文明，最终要以实现人的文明为目标。不断提升人类发展的文明程度，实现人的全面发展是马克思主义的一贯主张，在现阶段的发展要求中突出表现为“人的现代化”。马克思认为，资本主义制度下人的发展状况是畸形的，提出人的发展应当是一种全面而自由的发展。邓小平意识到人的因素在实现中国式现代化进程中的重要性，虽然没有直接提出人的现代化这一概念，但其理论和实践都有意识地促进了人的现代化的向前迈进。

Deng Xiaoping pointed out, “Whether China’s affairs can be handled well, whether socialism and reform and opening up can be upheld, whether the economy can develop faster, and whether the country can enjoy long-term peace and stability, in a certain sense, the key lies in people.” Therefore, when conceiving the grand blueprint for Chinese-path modernization, he placed the promotion of human development in a prominent position. First, respect the principal position of the people. In his view, the people, as the main body of China’s reform and opening up and socialist modernization, must not only respect the principal position of the people but also always pay attention to the interests and aspirations of the broadest masses of the people. “Whether the people support, approve, are happy, or agree should be taken as the starting point and destination for formulating policies and making decisions.” The people are the historical subject of realizing Chinese-path modernization. Without the support and endorsement of the masses of the people, and without realizing the basic rights and interests of the masses of the people, it is impossible to realize Chinese-path modernization. Second, attach importance to the liberation of people’s ideas and concepts. Deng Xiaoping realized at an early stage that political liberation is only external liberation, while the liberation of people’s thinking is the essential manifestation of socialist modernization. Therefore, socialist modernization must never ignore the modernization of people’s ideas and concepts. In the theme report of the Third Plenary Session of the 11th Central Committee of the Party, “Emancipate the Mind, Seek Truth from Facts, Unite as One and Look to the Future,” he issued a declaration of “liberating people and developing people,” which required both completely opening the floodgates that bind people’s thinking and being down-to-earth and united in moving forward. He repeatedly emphasized the importance of breaking ideological rigidity and continuously emancipating the thinking of cadres and the masses, pointing out that “a party, a country, a nation, if everything starts from dogma, thinking is rigid, and superstition prevails, then it cannot advance, its vitality will cease, and it will perish as a party and a nation.” From this, it can be seen that Deng Xiaoping elevated the liberation of people’s thinking to the strategic height of the Party’s and the state’s development, which is sufficient to show the degree of his attention. Third, focus on the enhancement of people’s subjective capabilities. On the basis of emphasizing people’s principal position and ideas and concepts, enhancing people’s capabilities reflects Deng Xiaoping’s meticulous dialectical thinking, which is a process of progressive and gradual deepening. The realization of the modernization of human beings is a process of safeguarding the realization of people’s principal rights and interests, breaking the pattern of rigid ideological shackles, and then focusing on enhancing people’s overall capabilities. Deng Xiaoping attached great importance to the enhancement of people’s intellectual abilities and the level of scientific and technological knowledge, believing that cutting-edge and rich scientific and technological knowledge is not only an important force in promoting the modernization of human beings but also a key element in realizing national modernization. He emphasized the need to improve the overall quality of laborers, stating that “only when laborers possess a higher level of scientific culture, rich production experience, and advanced labor skills can they play a greater role in modern production.”

邓小平指出，“中国的事情能不能办好，社会主义和改革开放能不能坚持，经济能不能快一点发展起来，国家能不能长治久安，从一定意义上说，关键在人”。因此，他在构想中国式现代化宏伟蓝图时，将促进人的发展摆在突出位置。第一，尊重人的主体地位。在他看来，人民作为中国改革开放和社会主义现代化建设的主体，既要尊重人民的主体地位，也要时刻关注最广大人民群众的利益和愿望，“要把人民拥护不拥护、赞成不赞成、高兴不高兴、答应不答应作为制定方针政策和作出决断的出发点和归宿”。人民是实现中国式现代化的历史主体。没有人民群众的拥护和支持，没有实现人民群众的基本权利和利益，就不可能实现中国式现代化。第二，重视人的思想观念的解放。邓小平在较早时期就意识到，政治解放仅仅是外在的解放，人的思想解放才是社会主义现代化的本质显现，因此，社会主义现代化绝不可忽视人思想观念的现代化。在党的十一届三中全会的主题报告《解放思想，实事求是，团结一致向前看》中，他发出了“解放人，发展人”的宣言，既要彻底打开束缚人思想的闸门，也要脚踏实地，团结向前。他反复强调打破思想僵化、不断解放干部和群众思想的重要性，指出“一个党，一个国家，一个民族，如果一切从本本出发，思想僵化，迷信盛行，那它就不能前进，它的生机就停止了，就要亡党亡国”。由此看出，邓小平将人的思想解放上升至党和国家发展的战略高度，足以说明他的重视程度。第三，注重人的主体能力的提升。在注重人的主体地位及思想观念的基础上，提升人的能力，体现出邓小平缜密的辩证思维，这是一个层层递进、逐步深化的过程。人的现代化的实现就是保障人主体权益的实现、打破思想僵化束缚格局进而注重提升人整体能力的过程。邓小平十分注重人的智力能力和科技知识水平的提升，认为前沿性的、丰富的科技知识既是推动人的现代化的重要力量，也是实现国家现代化的关键要素，强调要提高劳动者的整体素质，“劳动者只有具备较高的科学文化水平，丰富的生产经验，先进的劳动技能，才能在现代化的生产中发挥更大的作用”。

Conclusion

结语

Realizing Chinese-path modernization was the central issue of Deng Xiaoping’s theoretical promotion and practical exploration during the new period of reform and opening up and socialist modernization. The transformation from “Chinese-style modernization” to the proposition of “Chinese-path modernization” not only contains Deng Xiaoping’s sober analysis of the basic national conditions of China as a developing country with a large population and a weak foundation but also reflects his systematic comparison of the specific reality of the gap in economic strength between our country and the world’s advanced countries as the chief architect of China’s reform and opening up, thereby overcoming the adverse tendency of being overly eager for quick results and steadily advancing the in-depth thinking made to realize modernization. His thinking and discourses on Chinese-path modernization not only enriched and developed Marxist modernization thought but also greatly promoted the development of the cause of socialist modernization, providing important guiding significance for comprehensively advancing the building of a strong country and the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation through Chinese-path modernization. This undoubtedly made an indelible historical contribution to promoting Chinese-path modernization.

实现中国式现代化是邓小平在改革开放和社会主义现代化建设新时期理论推动和实践探索的中心问题。从中国式的现代化到中国式现代化这一命题的转换，既蕴含着邓小平对中国这样一个人口多、底子薄的发展中国家基本国情的冷静分析，也体现了他作为中国改革开放的总设计师系统比较我国同世界先进国家经济实力存在差距的具体实际，从而克服急于求成的不良倾向、稳步推进实现现代化所作出的深入思考。其关于中国式现代化的思考和论述，不仅丰富和发展了马克思主义的现代化思想，也极大推动了社会主义现代化建设事业的发展，对以中国式现代化全面推进强国建设、民族复兴伟业具有重要指导意义。这也无疑为推进中国式现代化作出了不可磨灭的历史贡献。

Online Editor: Jing Mu

网络编辑：静穆