The Three-Dimensional Historical Foundation of Historical Materialism

Born in the 19th century, historical materialism represents a great revolution in the history of human philosophy. Its genesis runs through Marx and Engels’ overall understanding and interpretation grounded in modern industrial practice, possessing both historiographical and philosophical dimensions. Historical materialism is a rational form constructed by inheriting, criticizing, and transcending the “general historical philosophy” tradition of “total historical view” represented by Hegel. Its revolutionary character relative to “general historical philosophy” lies in “returning the content of history to history,” that is, a total historical philosophy established in the productive practice of “real individuals,” achieving a scientific answer to the “general history” of the development of human society.

诞生于19世纪的历史唯物主义是人类哲学史上的一次伟大变革，其生成史贯穿着马克思恩格斯立足现代工业实践之上的总体性理解和阐释，兼具史学与哲学双重向度。唯物史观是在继承、批判与超越以黑格尔为代表“一般历史哲学”的“总体史观”传统所建构的合理形态，其对“一般历史哲学”的革命性在于“将历史的内容还给历史”，即是一种建立在“现实的个人”的生产实践之中的总体历史哲学，实现对人类社会发展“历史一般”的科学解答。

The Dimension of Internal and External Isomorphism between Natural History and Human History

自然史与人类史内外同构向度

History is the practical history of “real individuals” based on material production. Marx and Engels’ understanding of “history” from the perspective of “human activity” differs from historiography’s partial restoration and verification of “historical facts,” and also from “general historical philosophy’s” construction of history using absolute spirit outside history. Instead, it confirms historical existence and essence from the practice of the unity of historical subject and object, that is, “real history” understood as society as a whole. On this basis, *The German Ideology* further stipulates that “history can be examined from two aspects and can be divided into natural history and human history.” Understanding the historical process with the new materialism’s “concept of practice” transforms religious historical views, geographical historical views, human nature historical views, and rational historical views in the history of Western philosophy, pointing out that the history of human society is a “natural historical process.” This view of history understands “history” as a practical process of mutual transformation between “natural historization” and “historical naturalization,” meaning that the unfolding of natural history and human history is not an abstract process detached from human activity, but a total interpretation of the relationships among humans, nature, and society.

历史是以物质生产为基础的“现实的个人”的实践史。马克思恩格斯从“人的活动”出发理解“历史”不同于历史学对“史实”的一定程度还原与证伪，也不同于“一般历史哲学”在历史之外运用绝对精神构设历史，而是从历史主客体相统一的实践中确证历史存在与本质，也就是把社会作为一个整体理解的“现实的历史”。在此基础上，《德意志意识形态》进一步规定了“历史可以从两方面来考察，可以把它划分为自然史和人类史”。以新唯物主义的“实践观”理解历史过程，变革了西方历史哲学史上宗教史观、地理史观、人性史观、理性史观等，指出人类社会历史是“自然历史过程”。这种历史观把“历史”理解为“自然历史化”与“历史自然化”实践互化过程，意味着自然史与人类史的展开不是脱离人的活动的抽象过程，而是对人、自然、社会之间关系的总体性诠释。

Natural history and human history are externally isomorphic historical forms on the basis of practice. Based on the latest scientific advances of the 19th century, Engels introduced the “arrow of time” into the natural world, outlining the scientific picture of natural evolution from four dimensions: the origin of the universe, the origin of the earth, the origin of life, and the origin of humans. Human history is like the history of natural technology, “noting how organs as tools of production are formed in the life of plants and animals.” [1]1 Karl Marx, *Capital*, Vol. 1, referring to the formation of organs as tools in nature. Plant and animal organs are generated in interaction with the natural environment, a diversified process independent of human will. Human history also appears as “primary, secondary, tertiary, etc., types,” [2]2 Karl Marx, *Preface to A Contribution to the Critique of Political Economy*, referring to different stages or types of social formations. manifesting as diversified historical forms.

自然史与人类史是在实践基础之上历史样态的外在同构。恩格斯曾基于19世纪最新科学进展，把“时间之矢”引入自然界，从宇宙起源、地球起源、生命起源和人类起源四重维度勾勒出自然界演化的科学图景。人类史如同自然工艺史，“注意到在动植物的生活中作为生产工具的器官是怎样形成的”。动植物器官在与自然环境的相互作用中生成，是不以人的意志为转移的多样化过程，人类史也呈现为“原生的、次生的、再生的等等类型”，表现为多样化历史样态。

Natural history and human history are internally isomorphic in terms of historical laws on the basis of practice. This is based on the historical necessity of “metabolic interaction” between humans and nature, and manifests in two complex situations: one is the “general sense” isomorphism between the laws of human history and the laws of natural history, embodied in the intrinsic connection between the material production relations between humans and nature and a certain social condition. The social relations among people are a deep development of the production relations between humans and nature. Humans are born through labor; this not only means that labor can produce the metabolic relationship between humans and nature, but also, at a deeper level, that people produce a series of social relations due to cooperative relations in labor. The other is the “special sense” isomorphism between historical laws and natural laws. As a specific historical form in human history, in capitalist society, humans and nature are in a state of opposition. Human history dominated by the logic of capital “appears” to engage in unconscious, blind, mechanical movement like natural history. Human history detached from reality and not constrained by objective laws has degenerated into a “defense” of natural history by bourgeois ideology. Eliminating the “alienated” state between human history and natural history requires returning to the active practice of the historical subject. In the production of material goods, humans expand from the relationship between humans and nature to the social relations among people, and achieve the organic unity of the relationship between humans and nature and the relationship among people in labor.

自然史与人类史是在实践之上历史规律的内在同构。这是基于人与自然“物质变换”的历史必然性同构，又表现为两种复杂情形：一种是人类史规律与自然史规律“一般意义”同构，体现为人与自然之间的物质生产关系同一定社会状况的内在关联，人与人之间的社会关系是对人与自然生产关系的深入发展。人是通过劳动诞生的，这不仅在于劳动能够生产出人与自然之间的物质变换关系，更深层次还在于人们由于劳动中的合作关系而生产出一系列的社会关系。另一种是历史规律与自然规律的“特殊意义”同构。作为人类史上的特定历史形态，资本主义社会中人与自然之间处于对立的状态，资本逻辑主导下的人类历史“仿佛”与自然历史一样做无意识的、盲目的、机械式运动。脱离现实的、不受客观规律制约的人类史已然沦为资产阶级意识形态的自然史“辩护”。消除人类史与自然史之间的“异化”状态要回归历史主体的能动实践，人在物质资料生产中由人与自然关系拓展到人与人的社会关系，并在劳动中实现人与自然和人与人的关系的有机统一。

The Dimension of Two-Way Connection between History and the Future

历史与未来的双向贯通向度

Marx and Engels’ solution to the question “Where is capitalist society heading?” was carried out in the temporal coordinates of “past—present—future.” As a science of the historical process of human society, the temporal view of historical materialism has a complete historical flow. Discovering the new world and its inherent “future dimension” in the critique of the old world is where the thinking of historical materialism transcends, and also the value orientation of the construction of a new view of history. As Carr said, “History acquires meaning and objectivity only when a continuous coherence is established between the past and the future.” [3]3 Edward Hallett Carr, *What Is History?*, a work on the philosophy of history. This new philosophy oriented toward the future is not a “utopian” fantasy, but an overall grasp of the logic of historical movement based on practice. It includes both the critical inheritance of past historical and civilizational achievements and the scientific foresight of future prospects, achieving an overall understanding of historical laws in the logical chain of “explanation—critique—foresight.”

马克思恩格斯对于“资本主义社会向何处去”的求解是在“过去—现在—未来”的时间坐标中进行的。作为关于人类社会历史进程的科学，历史唯物主义时间观有着完整的历史流向，在批判旧世界中发现新世界及其蕴含的“未来向度”是历史唯物主义致思超越之处，也是新历史观建构的价值指向。正如卡尔所言，“只有在过去与未来之间建立一种持续不断的连贯时，历史才获得意义与客观性”。这种面向未来的新哲学不是“乌托邦”空想，而是建基于实践之上对历史运动逻辑的整体把握，既有对以往历史文明成果的批判继承，又有对未来图景的科学预见，在“解释—批判—预见”的逻辑链中通达对历史规律的总体性认知。

Marx and Engels’ overall grasp of history is an overall grasp of “historical time,” not indulging in individual, non-essential, external time fragments, and using a large number of contingent events to open the way for historical necessity. The complex situation of historical time requires establishing a “reflective” way of thinking to enhance cognitive consciousness, that is, Hegel’s “reflection takes thought itself as its content, and strives to make thought conscious of itself as thought.” [4]4 G.W.F. Hegel, *The Encyclopaedia Logic*, on the nature of reflection. While inheriting Hegel’s processual way of thinking of reflection and re-reflection, negation and re-negation, Marx and Engels also reflected on and transformed his “speculative reflection” with “practical reflection.” “Practical reflection” advocates “taking the opposite path from actual development,” [5]5 Karl Marx, *Capital*, Vol. 1, on the method of political economy, referring to the retrospective method of analysis. grasping the qualitative stipulations of social forms with a certain economic relation as the core under certain spatiotemporal conditions, and reproducing the generative history of human existence itself through the narrative method of the subject’s “retrospective thinking.”

马克思恩格斯对历史的总体把握是对“历史时间”的总体把握，而不是耽于个别、非本质、外在的时间片段，并借助大量偶生性事件为历史必然性开辟道路。历史时间的复杂情势要求树立“反思性”思维方式增进认知自觉，也就是黑格尔的“反思以思想的本身为内容，力求思想自觉其为思想”。马克思恩格斯在继承黑格尔反思与再反思、否定之否定过程性思维方式的同时，也以“实践反思”对其“思辨反思”予以反思与改造。“实践反思”主张“采取同实际发展相反的道路”，把握一定时空条件下以某种经济关系为内核的社会形态质性规定，经由主体“从后思索”的叙事方式再现人的存在本身的生成史。

The new philosophy that emphasizes the future links the logic of historical development with the practical movement of communism. The realization of communism is the result of the contradictory movement of productive forces and relations of production, economic base and superstructure unfolding in historical time and space, essentially constituting the fundamental driving force of historical progress and development. The proletariat participates in the practice of creating the future and requires the ideological guidance and spiritual support of historical materialism. Historical materialism is a philosophy oriented toward the future in the dimension of historical time. It not only achieves an overall grasp of historical laws in social practice, but also studies and judges the trend of historical development through scientific methods, being the unity of scientificity and foresight.

注重未来的新哲学把历史发展的逻辑与共产主义现实运动联系起来。共产主义的实现是生产力和生产关系、经济基础和上层建筑之间的矛盾运动在历史时空的延展结果，实质构成历史进步与发展的根本推动力量。无产阶级参与了创造未来的实践，需要历史唯物主义的思想指导和精神支撑。历史唯物主义在历史时间维度上是面向未来的哲学，既在社会实践中实现对历史规律的总体性把握，又通过科学的方法研判历史发展的趋势，是科学性与预见性的统一。

The Dimension of Interaction and Linkage between National History and World History

民族史与世界史交往联动向度

Grasp national history from the overall process and trend of world history. The large-scale industrial production, international division of labor, and capitalist trade market of the 19th century were not only the international background for the generation of historical materialism, but also became the content of its “world history” perspective. The so-called “world history” refers to the history since the bourgeoisie “opened up the world market, making the production and consumption of all countries cosmopolitan,” [6]6 Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, *The Communist Manifesto*, describing the globalizing effect of the bourgeoisie. and since various nation-states, through universal intercourse, entered a state of mutual interdependence, making the world integrated or “unified.” Whether focusing early on Britain, France, Germany and other Western European countries, later paying attention to Poland, Spain, the Netherlands and other European countries, or even in their later years investigating Russia, India, China, etc., Marx and Engels never confined their vision to the corner of national history of the “Eurocentric view of history,” but always adhered to a world historical perspective that “overflows” national history, grasping the overall process of world history covering Eastern and Western societies with a global vision. World history has become an overall system in which national histories are interdependent, interactive, and mutually influential.

站在世界史的总体进程和趋势把握民族史。19世纪大工业生产、国际分工体系、资本主义贸易市场不仅是历史唯物主义生成的国际背景，更成为其“世界历史”视野的内容观照。所谓“世界历史”，就是面对资产阶级“开拓了世界市场，使一切国家的生产和消费都成为世界性的了”的现实境遇，各民族国家通过普遍交往，进入相互依存状态，使世界整体化或“一体化”以来的历史。无论早期聚焦英国、法国、德国等西欧国家，此后对波兰、西班牙、荷兰等其他欧洲国家的关注，甚或是晚年对俄国、印度、中国等的考察，马克思恩格斯都没有把自己的目光局限于“欧洲中心史观”的民族史一隅，而是始终坚持“溢出”民族史的世界历史视野，以全球性眼光把握涵盖东西方社会的世界历史总体进程。世界史已经成为各民族史间相互依赖、相互作用、相互影响的整体系统。

Examining the intrinsic essence of world history from the perspective of the developmental paths of national histories. In their later years, Marx and Engels considered the possibility and reality of economically backward Russia crossing the capitalist "Caucasian Gorge" [7]7 "Caucasian Gorge" (卡夫丁峡谷) refers to the "Caudine Forks," a narrow mountain pass in ancient Italy where a Roman army was forced to surrender in 321 BCE. Marx and Engels used it as a metaphor for the capitalist stage of development, suggesting that some societies might avoid this stage through socialist revolution. to embark on the socialist path, "depending on the degree of development of its own production and its internal and external intercourse." [8]8 This is a paraphrase of a concept from Marx and Engels in *The German Ideology* (1845–1846), where they argue that the level of development of productive forces and intercourse determines the possibility of social transformation. This indicates that the diversity of developmental paths of national histories does not constitute a negation of the laws of world history; the laws of historical development do not "become invalid" due to the particularities of national histories. The key to understanding the issue lies in "always adapting to the historical conditions of the time, wherever and whenever." [9]9 This is a direct quotation from the 1872 Preface to the German edition of the *Communist Manifesto*, where Marx and Engels emphasize the need to apply their theory flexibly according to changing historical conditions. This undoubtedly highlights the practical, dialectical, and historical characteristics of historical materialism, whose specific doctrines on views of nature, time, and development are all unfolded in an interlocking manner within the spatiotemporal coordinates constructed by world history.

立足民族史发展道路透视世界史内在实质。马克思恩格斯晚年审视经济落后的俄国在“取决于自己的生产以及自己内部与外部的交往的发展程度”跨越资本主义“卡夫丁峡谷”走上社会主义道路的可能性与现实性。这表明民族史发展道路的多样性并不构成对世界史发展规律的否定，历史发展规律不因民族史的特殊性而“失效”，理解问题的关键在于“随时随地都要以当时的历史条件为转移”。这无疑彰显了历史唯物主义的实践性、辩证性、历史性特征，其自然观、时间观、发展观等一切具体学说都是在世界历史搭建的时空坐标中环环相扣式展开。

The interaction and linkage between national histories and world history are sublimated into a spirit of world history. Unlike Hegel's world history unified under the "world historical spirit," historical materialism, grounded in human practice, grasps the capitalist world system on a macro level, penetrating its revolutionary and critical spirit in the theory and practice of criticizing capitalist private ownership, implying a comprehensive reflection on both national histories and world history. The concern for the overall history of human destiny determined that Marx and Engels viewed history from the perspective of world history, and endowed it with contemporary significance by combining it with the reality of the coexistence of development and underdevelopment in the contemporary world. The combination of theory and practice is indeed a revolution in the history of thought.

民族史与世界史之间的交往联动升华为一种世界历史精神。不同于黑格尔统一于“世界历史精神”的世界历史，历史唯物主义立足人类实践对资本主义世界体系宏观把握，在批判资本主义私有制的理论与实践中透视其中革命性与批判性精神，暗含对民族史与世界史的全局观照。对于人类命运总体历史的关注决定了马克思恩格斯从世界历史的角度观看历史，并结合当代世界发达与不发达并存的实际赋予其时代意蕴，理论与实践的结合确实是思想史上的革命。

In summary, historical materialism achieves the internal isomorphism of "natural history—human history" in historical content, the bidirectional connection of "past—present—future" in historical time, and the bidirectional determination of "nation—world" in historical space, endowing the historical totality constituted by the three-dimensional historical foundation with characteristics of unity, diversity, and openness. This "grand view of history" based on practice has clearly become an important intellectual resource for the governance of the Chinese Communist Party, aligning with the theme and essence of a century of historical development, highlighting that Marxism ensures the correct direction of world historical development in promoting Chinese-path modernization and constructing a new form of human civilization, thereby invigorating Marxism in the practice of socialism with Chinese characteristics and opening up a new historical vista for adapting Marxism to the Chinese context and the needs of the times.

总之，历史唯物主义在历史内容上实现“自然史—人类史”的内在同构，在历史时间上实现“过去—现在—未来”的双向贯通，在历史空间上实现“民族—世界”的双向规定，使三维历史底蕴构成的历史总体呈现出统一、多样、开放特征。这种实践基础上的“大历史观”显然成为中国共产党治国理政的重要思想资源，契合百年历史发展的主题与本质，凸显马克思主义在推动中国式现代化、构建人类文明新形态上确保世界历史发展的正确方向，使马克思主义在中国特色社会主义实践中焕发蓬勃生机，开辟马克思主义中国化时代化的历史新图景。

Online editor: Paul

网络编辑：保罗