JOURNAL OF ZHEJIANG UNIVERSITY (HUMANITIES AND SOCIAL SCIENCES)

浙江大学学报(人文社会科学版)


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	Latest Printed Issue
	2026, Vol.56 Num.7
	Online: 2026-08-05

	Article

Article

	5	Chang Qingxin, Chen Hongrui

		The Methodological Effect of “Systems Thinking” in Constructing the China’s Independent Knowledge System of Economics ^Hot!
		Unlike the concept of systematicity advocated by the academic school of economics, which considers the orderly progression of premise assumptions, model design, and empirical testing to be a complete and necessary process for constructing a theory or knowledge system, Xi Jinping’s “systems thinking” explicitly defines the multi-layered characteristics of systematicity for China’s independent knowledge system of economics, and establishes the basic principles of thought and key directions for breakthrough in the construction of China’s independent knowledge system of economics.Applying this “systems thinking” to the construction process of China’s independent knowledge system of economics, the key lies in grasping the scientific connotations of the “system” across three critical dimensions: historical position, foundational content, and developmental evolution. First, in the dimension of historical position, it is essential to identify and grasp the historical process and contemporary context in which the emerging knowledge system is situated. No theoretical system is generated in abstraction; rather, it is deeply rooted in specific socio-historical conditions. China’s independent knowledge system of economics is a dynamic knowledge system situated within the chain of historical development. It interacts closely with and mutually shapes China’s economic and social development process, and continuously evolves and is enriched as the historical era and its context change and shift. Second, in the dimension of foundational content, it is necessary to clarify the theoretical structure of the knowledge system, starting from a system of intrinsically-linked real-world problems. China’s independent knowledge system of economics is a problem-focused knowledge system that continually expands its theoretical content by explaining and responding to a series of major theoretical and practical issues emerging from China’s economic development in the New Era. Finally, in the dimension of developmental evolution, it is crucial to establish the innovative logic and pathways of the knowledge system. China’s independent knowledge system of economics is a future-oriented knowledge system. While consistently adhering to its theoretical foundations, it actively promotes exchanges and interactions with other economic theories, fostering innovation and deepening in research paradigms, theoretical methodologies, and discursive expressions. In this way, it is a knowledge system that is well-grounded yet open and inclusive, representing Chinese standpoint with global significance.Overall, these three dimensions are mutually reinforcing and unfold progressively, exhibiting relative independence while maintaining intrinsic coherence. Together, they construct the systemic configuration of China’s independent knowledge system of economics. Within this configuration, the historical position dimension provides direction and orientation, the foundational content dimension offers structure and framework, and the developmental evolution dimension supplies impetus and vitality. They collectively advance the construction of an independent knowledge system of economics that features a scientifically robust theoretical foundation, constantly integrates new experiences, responds to new problems, and possesses both originality and openness.
		2026 Vol. 56 (7): 5-15 [Abstract] ( 0 ) [HTML 1KB] [PDF 713KB] ( 0 )

	16	Yang Jun, Wang Zeyang, Xiao Mingyue, Jiang Mobing

		Government Data Openness, Personal Information Protection, and Enterprise Digital Technology Innovation ^Hot!
		铸就宋画研究新高度Government data openness is widely regarded as a key initiative for unlocking the innovative potential of data. However, it also blurs the boundaries between publicness and privacy, leading to widespread concerns about the misuse of personal information and privacy breaches. Therefore, against the backdrop of growing institutional tension between government data openness and personal information protection, it is essential to investigate their impact on digital technological innovation in order to address the complex challenges of data governance.This study constructs a theoretical framework from two perspectives: knowledge supply-driven and market demand-induced. Using the launch of government data open platforms as a quasi-natural experiment, the study employs a difference-in-differences (DID) approach to examine how government data openness affects enterprise digital technological innovation, and the role of the Personal Information Protection Law in shaping these effects. The results show that government data openness significantly increases both the quantity and quality of digital technological innovation, while also expanding the boundaries of innovation. Specifically, the opening of market economic data and public service data plays a crucial role in fostering innovation. Mechanism analysis identifies two main channels. On the one hand, it strengthens the knowledge supply for digital innovation by enhancing data availability, attracting digital talent, and promoting digital entrepreneurship. On the other hand, it stimulates market demand and drives digital technological innovation by alleviating market information asymmetry, improving market perception, and expanding market scale. Building on this, the study further examines the impact of personal information protection. It finds that the implementation of the Personal Information Protection Law not only leads the government to adjust the types of data opened but also compels enterprises to innovate in privacy protection technologies and compliance management. This results in a shift in both the structure of data supply and the patterns of digital innovation. The resultant impact weakens the positive effect of government data openness on enterprise digital technological innovation, confirming the existence of institutional tension between data openness and privacy protection.This paper makes three key contributions. First, it is the first to integrate government data openness, personal information protection, and enterprise digital technological innovation into a unified analytical framework, providing a deeper insight into the role of different data governance policies in digital technological innovation in the digital age. Second, it identifies the specific mechanisms through which government data openness affects enterprise digital technological innovation from the dual perspectives, addressing the gap in previous literature that predominantly focused on the supply side while neglecting demand. Third, it highlights the constraints imposed by personal information protection on the innovative effects of government data openness, providing insights for policymakers balancing data use with information security.
		2026 Vol. 56 (7): 16-39 [Abstract] ( 0 ) [HTML 1KB] [PDF 1052KB] ( 0 )

	40	Mao Zhaohui

		The Rule-Utilitarianism Dimension of Xunzi’s Ethics: Criticisms, Defence and Limitation ^Hot!
		In recent years, scholars have put forward more rigorous arguments to substantiate the utilitarian nature of Xunzi’s ethics. Nevertheless, these arguments have overlooked several counterarguments that contradict their stance, leaving the rigor of their reasoning open to question. These counterarguments mainly originate from Western academia. In general, Western scholars have raised two kinds of criticisms on the utilitarian interpretation of Xunzi’ ethics, which is in general based on his theory of ritual, i.e., the non-consequentialism criticism represented by Eric Hutton and the non-hedonism criticism represented by Heiner Roetz and Paul Goldin. Hutton raises three points of criticism against the consequentialism interpretation of Xunzi’ ethics, that is, uncodifiability, non-necessity, anti-consequentialism. However, these three points do not have their ground in the domain of theory. The non-hedonism criticism of Roetz and Goldin is based on their dichotomy of morality and desire in Xunzi’s theory of human nature. Again, this dualism interpretation of Xunzi’s theory of human nature is a misreading of Xunzi’s concept of righteousness, which leads to the failure of their non-hedonism criticism. Drawing on Anthony Quinton’s definition, utilitarianism can be understood as combination of two fundamental principles: the principle of consequentialism and the principle of hedonism. When measured against these two principles, a rule-utilitarianism interpretation of Xunzi’ ethics is defended in the end. Nevertheless, this rule-utilitarianism interpretation is invulnerable only in the domain of theory and communal life. It is worth noting that despite the above congruences between Xunzi’s ethics and utilitarianism, the two cannot be unconditionally equated entirely. The first limitation is that the utilitarian character of Xunzi’s ethics only holds in the theoretical rather than the practical domain. In other words, Xunzi’s ethics aligns with utilitarian principles only when his concept of li (ritual propriety) refers to the norms of a certain social organization. The second limitation is that Xunzi’s ethics can only be categorized as utilitarianism at the communal rather than the individual level. This is because, in terms of consequences, li as moral norms takes collective interests as its criterion of measurement; and in terms of ends, li as moral norms serves communal objectives instead of individual ones. In short, Xunzi’s rule-utilitarianism is an ethics aimed at establishing objective rules for social life rather than an ethics aimed to guide personal life and can be used to bridge Confucian ethics and utilitarianism. It follows that while Xunzi’s ethics builds a notable bridge between Confucian ethics and utilitarianism, its bridging function cannot be overstated without any limitations.
		2026 Vol. 56 (7): 40-53 [Abstract] ( 0 ) [HTML 1KB] [PDF 775KB] ( 0 )

	54	Luo Weidong, Hang Xuan

		The Beginnings of Modern East Asian Humanomics: An Inquiry into the Economic Thought of Hajime Kawakami ^Hot!
		The origin and development of modern East Asian Humanomics have been deeply shaped by Confucian thought, especially in countries like China and Japan. Japanese economist Kawakami Hajime (1879-1946) is a representative figure of this school. He forged a human-centred economic theory that integrates Confucian culture with Western economics while offering a penetrating critique of the wealth-centric orientation of mainstream economics. Kawakami argues that economics should emphasize moral cultivation and spiritual life, and that it ought not to revolve solely around the growth of material wealth, but instead address the conditions for the all-round development of human beings and their pursuit of happiness and fulfilment.Kawakami’s Humanomics grew out of his study of Confucian thought in Tokugawa Japan. He sharply perceived the fundamental difference between the Confucian ideal of keisei saimin (“ordering the world and relieving the people”) and Western economics: Confucianism links economic questions to statecraft and insists that economic development be combined with the cultivation of personal virtue and spiritual civilisation, treating the economy as an instrument for achieving the latter. He further observed that, as Japan embraced Western economic theory, this dimension of thought was gradually marginalised. By translating Western “economics” simply as keizai, Japanese scholars obscured the differences in scope and problem consciousness between the two traditions. While acknowledging the limited analytical tools of Tokugawa Confucian scholars, Kawakami praised their doctrine for its profound insight into wealth and social development, stressing that Confucian economic thought values not only national wealth but also civic character and moral education—an orientation fundamentally at odds with modern economics, which tends to treat material wealth as the sole yardstick of social progress.Chinese scholars encountered similar cultural frictions when modern economics was introduced—often via Japan—mirroring Japan’s own struggle to digest Western theory. Kawakami’s analysis of the tension between Confucian thought and modern economics helps to explain Chinese hesitations toward concepts such as “economy” and “competition”. His Humanomics is built upon this cultural conflict: on the one hand, he recognises the contribution of Western economics to productivity and growth; on the other hand, he affirms the centrality of Confucian culture for human spiritual civilisation. Accordingly, he does not advocate an extreme suppression of material desires, but calls for a balanced development of economic, social and spiritual life. To this end, he insists that economics take as its subject concrete individuals endowed with emotions and moral values rather than abstract egoists, and must treat altruistic motivation as a core dimension of economic behaviour—a position that shows clear affinities with Marshall.Kawakami’s humanistic orientation laid an important intellectual foundation for his later turn to Marxism. In his view, only a thorough transformation of the existing economic order can bring about genuine equality, justice and all-round human development. This shift, however, was not a simple ideological conversion, but a deepening and development of his long-standing project in Humanomics. He believed that the spread of money-mediated egoism in capitalist society was eroding the moral basis of human life, and that the Confucian moral-economy tradition and Marx’s critique of capital were in many respects complementary. Thus, in embracing Marxism, Kawakami retained a strong Confucian-humanistic concern within his reading of Marx. His work not only advanced the development of economics in Japan, but also offered important theoretical resources for later Chinese scholars seeking to combine Confucian culture with modern economics and to develop a distinctively East Asian Humanomics.
		2026 Vol. 56 (7): 54-66 [Abstract] ( 0 ) [HTML 1KB] [PDF 847KB] ( 0 )

	67	Xu Wanlong

		Law Cannot Yield to Wrongness: The Evolution and Interpretation of a Legal Proverb ^Hot!
		In the past, cases involving self-defense were relatively rare in China’s judicial practice, reducing the justifiable self-defense to a “zombie provision”. To address this issue, China’s judicial system established the principle that “law must not yield to wrongness”. Over time, this principle has gained widespread influence and become a well-known legal proverb in Chinese society. However, this legal saying is not uniquely Chinese; it originates from the famous quote “Das Recht braucht dem Unrecht nicht zu weichen” initiated by the 19th-century German criminal law scholar Berner. The translation of this phrase has been a subject of controversy within the Chinese criminal law community. An in-depth study of Berner’s work reveals that the original meaning of the phrase is “rights need not yield to wrongness”, based on the Hegelian concept of rights as “entities” and demonstrated by showing the “nothingness” of lawlessness. Later, proponents of the principle of legal confirmation embraced this phrase. It subsequently gained widespread circulation within the German criminal law community. Over time, its meaning evolved into “law need not yield to wrongness”, where “law” refers to the actual or normative effect of the entire legal system, and “wrongness” refers to illegal acts that involve both worthless behavior and a worthless result. The mechanism ensuring that “law need not yield to wrongness” lies in the double negation: the “negation of the obligation to retreat” and the “negation of the measure of legal interest”. The “negation of the obligation to retreat” means that a defender can directly resist an unlawful intruder in the face of unlawful infringement, while the “negation of the measure of legal interest” emphasizes that, when determining whether the act of defense exceeds the limit, it is unnecessary to compare the intensity or strength of the defensive act and the infringement, nor the legal interest damage caused by both. It suffices to assess whether the defender’s measures are both effective and proportionate to the circumstances. Although China’s principle that “law must not yield to wrongness” is directly transplanted from “law need not yield to wrongness”, it has acquired an independent local connotation due to the difference between the modal verbs “must not” and “need not”. Unlike the principle that “law need not yield to wrongness”, which serves as a guideline for ordinary citizens, “law must not yield to wrongness” is a judicial norm aimed at requiring judicial bodies to actively apply the provisions of justifiable self-defense. This encourages citizens to exercise their right to self-defense in order to maintain legal order, thus enabling judicial bodies to fulfill their obligation to combat wrongness and uphold the rule of law. However, in China’s judicial practice, the necessity theory—rather than the two-element theory based on fundamental adaptation theory—has not been adopted in determining the limits of self-defense. This has led to a failure to fully implement the principle that “law cannot yield to wrongness”.
		2026 Vol. 56 (7): 67-81 [Abstract] ( 0 ) [HTML 1KB] [PDF 811KB] ( 0 )

	82	Wu Jie

		Legislative Analysis and Transformation of Traditional Crimes Handled Only upon Complaint ^Hot!
		Recently, crimes handled only upon complaint have attracted considerable scholarly attention, resulting in extensive research findings. Their traditional forms have largely faded from historical memory and remain insufficiently explored. However, investigating the traditional crimes handled only upon complaint is still necessary, as it can help us reexamine, fully understand, and even improve today’s legislation on such crimes from a historical perspective.The systematic establishment of crimes handled only upon complaint in traditional Chinese law traces back to the Code of the Tang Dynasty. Successive dynasties later adopted and revised these provisions. All traditional crimes handled only upon complaint were minor crimes occurring among relatives. Except for the crime of a husband beating his wife or concubine, where the wife or concubine could initiate a complaint, in other crimes handled only upon complaint, the right to file a complaint belonged to the senior family members, reflecting the traditional law’s emphasis on maintaining hierarchical distinctions. In traditional law, relatives generally lacked the right to report or lodge complaints against each other. The laws of “concealment among family relatives”, “voluntary surrender”, and “the crime of denouncing a superior relative” together established a system forbidding private prosecutions and denunciations between relatives. The central issue is whether the self-surrender rules, which grant mitigation or immunity to relatives who report crimes, apply to intra-family offenses. This question sparked considerable debate among Ming and Qing legal scholars. Wang Kentang and Xue Yunsheng believed that the exemption or reduction of punishment under the law of voluntary surrender for relatives who report crimes included intra-family crimes, while Lei Menglin and Shen Zhiqi held the opposite view. Upon analyzing the arguments of both sides, Lei and Shen’s reasoning proves more convincing.Due to differing understandings of whether the exemption or reduction of punishment under the law of voluntary surrender for relatives who report crimes includes intra-family crimes, Ming and Qing jurists also reached widely divergent interpretations on the legislative intent of crimes handled only upon complaint. Wang Kentang believed that “private accusation” conferred a right on family members to lodge criminal complaints, thus excluding the possibility of immunity based on voluntary surrender. Shen Zhiqi, however, argued that “private accusation” was primarily intended to preserve familial bonds. A careful review of the arguments presented by the two jurists reveals that Wang’s theory is largely flawed. According to the provisions of the separate crime provision law, once a specific crime committed between family members is separately established as a criminal offense, the principle of concealed crimes becomes invalid. Any violations will be adjudicated in accordance with the relevant provisions of the applicable provisions of the existing law. Therefore, the “private accusation” system did not grant family members the right to lodge accusations. In traditional societies, where the family and the state were structured on the same model, crimes handled only upon complaint acted as a mechanism by which the state transferred part of its governing authority to the family, so as to better protect ethical and familial bonds.During the late Qing reforms, the 1907 Draft Great Qing Criminal Code, partially influenced by the Japanese Criminal Code, incorporated provisions for crimes handled only upon complaint. Influenced heavily by the theory of legal interests, these reformed provisions deviated markedly from their traditional counterparts. Nonetheless, remnants of traditional thought persisted, as the late Qing legislation on crimes handled only upon complaint continued to emphasize the protection of family ethics. It follows that, under the legal interest theory, morals or ethics are generally not treated as protected objects in criminal law, as the legal interests safeguarded by criminal law should align with contemporary social values. If familial ethics remain a value upheld by that society, then criminal law should also provide protection for it. At present, family ethics remains an important issue in China’s legal framework. The Constitution explicitly recognizes the family as a fundamental value in its provisions. In this context, it is appropriate to treat family ethics as a legal interest protected by China’s criminal law. Defining family-related crimes as private offenses will help resolve conflicts, mend family ties, and prevent criminal law from undermining family ethics.
		2026 Vol. 56 (7): 82-97 [Abstract] ( 0 ) [HTML 1KB] [PDF 880KB] ( 0 )

	98	Zhou Zhifeng

		Four Case Studies on Dialectal Words in Zhejiang Province ^Hot!
		In every dialect, there exist words that have pronunciation but no standardized written form, or whose meaning and pronunciation are difficult to interpret. Investigating the original characters and motivations of such dialectal words is an important aspect of dialect research. Current research on Chinese dialects has made marked progress, yet it also suffers from a common pitfall: studies in this field often prioritize phonology and grammar while tending to overlook the etymological origins and semantic motivations of dialectal vocabulary. This paper focuses on the Ningbo and Shaoxing dialects of Zhejiang Province, selecting four problematic dialectal words for examination, analysis, and discussion. The study finds that, from the perspective of phonetic evolution, the term meaning “leisure or not busy tiaoda (调大)” corresponds to tiaotai (调泰), The character tiao (调) conveys the notions of harmony, adaptation, and coordination, while tai (泰) denotes peace, comfort, and abundance. Tiaotai is thus a synonymous compound. In the Wu dialect, the term tiaotai carries two meanings: “comfortable, relaxed” and “composed, having ample time”. This is clearly connected to the sense of “being free, unhurried” associated with tiaoda and likely represents a split from the same lexical origin. The shift from tiaotai to tiaoda is the result of initial consonant assimilation. The term taihua (态^上声话) meaning “comforting or reassuring” corresponds to taihua (泰话). The term kuntaijiao (睏态觉) meaning “to sleep soundly” is in fact kuntaijiao. The pronunciation of tai (泰) as tai (态) with a rising tone is a remnant of its literary reading, and historical evidence indicates that tai (泰) was pronounced with a rising tone, though this was probably omitted in traditional rhyme books. From the perspective of semantic development, the word Jiang (弶) in the expression qisui jiang basui (七岁弶八岁), meaning bullying, is a result of semantic extension. The character jiang originally referred to as “a tool for trapping birds or animals”, then extended to mean “to trap using such a tool”, was later further extended to signify “to deceive or swindle”, and eventually evolved to mean “to bully”. The trajectory of this semantic shift is clear. A major reason for the unclear identification of dialectal etymons is the interruption of semantic extension chains. Previous researchers failed to recover the interrupted or overlooked sense of “lure or cheat”, which consequently hindered a convincing explanation of how Jiang came to acquire the meaning “to bully”. From the perspective of folk culture, the use of langxing (榔兴) to refer to hammer may be related to the people’s psychological tendency to avoid misfortune and seek good fortune. The character lang (郎) is polysemous, serving as an official title, an honorific term for young men, and a form of address used by women for their husbands or lovers. In the Suzhou and Ningbo dialects, chui (槌) and chu (除) are homophones, while in the Shaoxing and Yuyao dialects, chui (槌) and zhi (滞) are near-homophones. The term langchui (榔槌) thus phonetically resonates with langchu (郎除) or langzhi (郎滞), both of which carry inauspicious connotations. Due to this association with misfortune, langchui came to be euphemistically referred to as xingge (兴哥). However, the literal meaning of xingge does not clearly indicate the object it refers to. To enhance semantic transparency, langchui later evolved to be euphemistically referred to as langxing. These four dialectal words represent different types of linguistic barriers compared to the common language and possess a certain degree of representativeness. In addition to tracing their origins and development, this study also attempts to summarize some underlying patterns.
		2026 Vol. 56 (7): 98-111 [Abstract] ( 0 ) [HTML 1KB] [PDF 1038KB] ( 0 )

	112	Zhou Guanggan

		The Emergence and Full Development of the Causal Preposition Zuò (坐) ^Hot!
		This paper examines the origin and maturity of causal preposition zuò (坐) in the history of Chinese grammar. In pre-Qin Chinese, zuò is commonly used as a verb meaning “sit” and “sit on your knees”, or as a noun related to “seat”. It is also often used in the legal context as a legal term to mean “crime”, “conviction” or “punishment for a crime”. According to the documents unearthed in the Qin and Han Dynasties and the documents handed down from the Warring States Period to the Middle Ages, this paper argues that the late Warring States to the Western Han is an important stage in the semantic evolution of zuò, and the usage of the reason preposition of “sit” has developed and matured by the Eastern Han Dynasty.Most previous studies generally agree that the causal preposition zuò originates from its legal usage, but they differ on the specific era and mechanism of its emergence. This paper holds that the key mechanism is “contextual absorption”. In legal discourse, zuò often appears in “zuò+object+result predicate” structure. The object usually indicates a crime, criminal act, fault or related fact, and the predicate after it indicates a legal judgment, punishment or corresponding consequence, such as removal from office, execution, exile or loss of nobility. Therefore, the whole structure expresses the meaning of “being sentenced or punished for committing some sin”. Because zuò appears repeatedly in this linguistic environment, the meaning of “reason” originally provided by the whole context is gradually absorbed by zuò itself.The paper first discusses how to identify the prepositional status of zuò. In the Shuihudi Qin bamboo slips, most examples of zuò still retain a strong legal verb meaning. However, some examples have shown obvious prepositional characteristic. The object following zuò is no longer limited to a fixed legal crime, but may be a complex verbal phrase or subject-predicate structure. The semantic focus of the sentence also shifts from the action of “crime” to the cause of the legal result. These examples indicate that the causal prepositional use of zuò had already appeared by the late Warring States period.In Western Han literature, especially the Shiji, the structure “zuò+object+result predicate” became highly productive. The objects of zuò could be nouns, nominal phrases, verbal phrases, subject-predicate structures, or even clauses. Some objects still indicate traditional legal charges, such as disrespect, conspiracy, witchcraft, etc. while others describe specific facts or circumstances that caused punishment or other consequences. As the object becomes more concrete and factual, the verbal meaning “to commit a crime” is weakened, and the causal meaning “because of” becomes more prominent. Comparison with the causal preposition yǐ (以) shows that zuò gradually occupied a similar syntactic position and performed a similar grammatical function, especially in contexts of crime, fault, judgment, and punishment.The paper further argues that the use of causal preposition zuò has matured in the Eastern Han Dynasty. This can be seen in four respects. First, the semantic scope of the object governed by zuò expands from legal charges to more general causes, facts, and situations. Second, zuò has entered relatively fixed reason expression format, such as “zuò...gù” and “zuò...suǒ zhì”, which parallel causal expressions formed with yǐ, yīn (因), and yòng (用). Third, zuò can be modified by adverb components such as xi (悉), zheng (正), jie (皆) or dan (但) showing that its grammatical function had become stable and flexible. Fourth, zuò appeared in contexts parallel to or interchangeable with yǐ and yīn, demonstrating that it had entered the system of causal prepositions. Quantitative statistics also supports this development. In early Qin legal literature, the objects of zuò was almost entirely a legal crime or criminal act. In Shiji and Hanshu, the use of zuò has increased significantly, and some objects have begun to indicate general facts or reasons. By the Eastern Han, causal zuò appeared in historical works, commentaries, Taoist texts, and early Buddhist translations, and it was no longer limited to strict legal contexts.After the Wei and Jin Dynasties, causal zuò declined rapidly. Although its usage had once expanded, it still retained a strong association with legal discourse and classical written style. As the system of causal prepositions changed, forms such as wéi (为), yīn, and later yīnwèi (因为) became more common and gradually replaced older and more literary expressions such as yǐ and zuò.In conclusion, the causal preposition zuò is not suddenly produced. the legal meaning provides the semantic basis, the construction “zuò+object+result predicate” supplied the syntactic condition, and repeated use in crime-punishment contexts enabled it to absorb the causal meaning of the whole structure. Causal zuò has already emerged in the late Warring States period, developed rapidly from Qin to Western Han, and matured completely in the Eastern Han Dynasty.
		2026 Vol. 56 (7): 112-122 [Abstract] ( 0 ) [HTML 1KB] [PDF 897KB] ( 0 )

	123	Mao Jianan, Wu Jinqun

		Why Does Vertical Linkage Emerge? The Institutional Logic of the Transformation of the Government Operation Guarantee ^Hot!
		The dynamics of vertical interdepartmental relations offer a critical lens through which to examine institutional change in Chinese public administration. Existing literature, however, has paid insufficient attention to shifts in the relative strength of tiao (vertical bureaucratic lines) and kuai (horizontal territorial units) within the jurisdictional management framework, particularly with regard to how the influence of higher-level departmental guidance authority and local governmental administrative authority over functional departments expands and contracts over time. The adjustment of vertical relationships within the Departments of Government Offices Administration provides an illuminating case for investigating how vertical linkage emerges as an organizational phenomenon. Historically, the Departments of Government Offices Administration focused on serving their respective levels of government, and their vertical relationships remained relatively loose. In recent years, however, they have placed increasing emphasis on strengthening vertical linkage across hierarchical levels. Drawing on the case of Province S, we collected case data through semi-structured interviews, fieldwork, and multi-channel secondary sources. The data were then analyzed using the framework analysis method.The emergence of vertical linkage mechanisms is rooted in the problems generated under conditions of loose vertical relationships. As the demands of state governance and the operating environment of functional departments change, their functions, authority structures, working mechanisms, and governance tools also shift. This creates a growing mismatch between established administrative arrangements and actual departmental practice. To resolve this mismatch, tiao exerts a growing influence over functional departments, driving the dynamic evolution of tiao-kuai relationships within the jurisdictional management framework. Four types of institutional arrangements and actions, along with their interactions, constitute the institutional logic underlying the transformation of the government operation guarantee system. The first concerns legitimacy consolidation and functional adaptation: as potential legitimacy deficits emerge, the institutional importance of administrative functions rises accordingly. The second concerns the redistribution of control rights and structural optimization: through the upward recentralization of control rights, the authority structure of the government operation guarantee system is reconfigured. The third concerns a stronger performance orientation and mechanism rea series of institutional mechanisms are reconstructed around more demanding performance objectives. The fourth concerns digital governance and technological embeddedness: by reducing information asymmetry, digital tools provide the technical infrastructure that sustains and enables vertical linkage. These four constituent elements of institutional logic interact through relations of nesting, symbiosis, conflict, and resolution. Legitimacy consolidation provides the foundation for nested institutional arrangements, while technological embeddedness serves as an operational fulcrum for the co-evolution of action mechanisms. At the same time, two types of tension emerge: one between legitimacy pressures and certain performance pressures, and the other between changes in authority structures and constraints on technological resources. Both are alleviated through strategic measures.By integrating state and societal perspectives and considering both internal and external factors, this study explains the causes and mechanisms underlying the transition from loose vertical relationships to robust vertical linkage within the jurisdictional management framework. The findings offer new theoretical insights into vertical intergovernmental relations and contemporary administrative reform in China. The dynamic evolution of tiao-kuai relationships in government departments is not always driven by efforts to resolve the inherent contradictions of the regime, it may equally serve to consolidate organizational legitimacy or to protect departmental interests. Furthermore, the study identifies a distinctive form of atypical jurisdictional management characterized by loose vertical relationships, and examines its connection to the nature of the public affairs it governs.Beyond the established categories of affairs concerned with governing the populace and controlling bureaucrats, there is a third, intermediate type that may be termed quasi-public affairs. Government operation guarantee is a paradigmatic example of this type.
		2026 Vol. 56 (7): 123-140 [Abstract] ( 0 ) [HTML 1KB] [PDF 802KB] ( 0 )

	141	Chen Xushi

		The Rise of Maritime Literary in Modern China from the Perspective of Human-Ocean Relationship: A Study Focusing on Liang Qichao’s Pacific Writing ^Hot!
		In ancient times China was primarily a continental state, where maritime geography was of marginal importance and exerted a rather limited influence on literature. With the eastward expansion of Western maritime powers and the dissemination of Western learning, the term “Pacific Ocean” was introduced to China, prompting Chinese intellectuals to pay attention to and engage in discussions on Pacific-related issues. This marked the first time the Chinese people established an explicit connection with the Pacific, thereby giving rise to Pacific-themed literary writing—hereafter referred to as Pacific writing. In the early stage of such writing, the ocean and shipboard spaces embodied modernity in terms of scientific and technological enlightenment. Among early writers, Huang Zunxian excelled in the artistic construction of Pacific spaces; furthermore, he abandoned the traditional view of China as a central continental power, no longer viewing maritime geography as marginalized. Although the lack of spatial identity with the Pacific was still prevalent, the incipient modernity demonstrated in these early works foreshadowed the inevitable arrival of a new era for Chinese Pacific-themed literary writing.Liang Qichao forged an exceptionally close bond with the Pacific. Firstly, he possessed extensive experiences of voyaging across the ocean. Secondly, he embraced the Pacific Age Theory, Sea Power Theory, and the maritime humanistic geographical thoughts of Hegel and other scholars, thereby acquiring a profound understanding of the significance of the Pacific. Thirdly, he formulated the vision of building China into a powerful maritime nation, elevating his personal connection with the Pacific to a state of profound spiritual yearning. Driven by these maritime geographical factors, Liang actively engaged in Pacific writing.The rise of maritime literary is manifested in three aspects. First, Pacific geography shaped Pacific writing. Liang conveyed the theme that China must become a powerful maritime nation, constructed a maritime spiritual homeland, and expressed a sense of maritime spatial identity. Within the Pacific space he constructed, Chinese literature demonstrated the modernity of both individuals and the nation in an unprecedented manner. In his works, the natural and human geography of the Pacific is isomorphic with his imagination of China as a maritime power, and the maritime space exhibited magnificent, vigorous, and progressive maritime aesthetic characteristics. Second, Liang’s Pacific-themed works were widely celebrated masterpieces of his time. Moreover, inspired by maritime geography, he formulated theories on revolutionizing the literary world, playing a pivotal role in the preliminary reconstruction of Chinese literature. Finally, Liang’s Pacific writing significantly contributed to the construction of a maritime humanistic environment in modern China. Under his influence, coupled with the progressive deepening of the human-ocean relationship during the late Qing dynasty and the Republican period, the rising momentum of maritime literary was sustained and further developed. Particularly in the maritime writing of the Republican period, maritime geography exerted a profound influence on maritime literature. The theme of building China into a maritime state was strengthened, the connotation of ocean home was enriched, and the connotation of human modernity within the maritime space became increasingly diverse. Maritime literature, thereby, evolved into a major literary genre, even rivaling rural and urban literature at that time. It fostered a sense of maritime awareness among readers and facilitated the formation of an ocean-friendly humanistic atmosphere.In summary, this paper, with literary geography as a methodological approach, systematically examines the maritime literature from 1900 to 1949. It explores the profound influence of maritime geography on maritime literature, reveals the artistic innovations of maritime literature in themes, spaces, and aesthetics, discusses its prominent status and its role in fostering an ocean-friendly humanistic environment, and proposes the new academic thought of the rise of maritime literary. This study significantly advances the research on modern maritime literature and expands the scope of literary geography as a discipline.
		2026 Vol. 56 (7): 141-154 [Abstract] ( 0 ) [HTML 1KB] [PDF 819KB] ( 0 )

	155	Lie Fu

		Bakhtin's Poetic Concern with the Artistic Form of the Novel: A Study Centered on the Theory of the Polyphonic Novel ^Hot!
		When discussing the innovative nature of Dostoevsky’s novels, Bakhtin observed that artistic form—the most revealing object—was precisely what researchers had overlooked and long failed to elucidate. Clarifying this issue was the fundamental intention behind Bakhtin’s establishment of the theory of the polyphonic novel, and it is also the significance of revisiting this topic here. Literary studies have a long-held convention: in the presence of content as the protagonist, artistic form is merely a secondary or supportive role. Bakhtin, however, argued for the crucial importance of studying artistic form. The process by which an artist observes and depicts their object is always permeated by the artistic mode of that observation and depiction. Bakhtin’s particular focus on this problem does not mean he disregarded content; rather, his conception of content was different. If unique artistic form is the indispensable bridge to unique content, then the theory of the polyphonic novel once again demonstrates that Bakhtin was uniquely insightful in discovering the polyphonic novel. It is precisely through Bakhtin’s distinctive perspective that we discern, within the artistic form adopted by Dostoevsky, things previously unseen.Bakhtin argued that Dostoevsky, unlike traditional novelists, was not only a writer who favored narration from an internal perspective, but also endowed this artistic perspective with unique expressive power. The internal perspective not only grants characters independence, but also allows the author to profoundly reveal the potential unfinalizability latent with them. This transforms the internal perspective into an artistic form enabling characters to express themselves from within, avoiding objectification. Many commentators have noted Dostoevsky’s preference for using inner monologue to depict the protagonist’s subjective image. However, only Bakhtin further discovered that these monologic utterances are filled with an inner dialogism—dialogue with oneself and with others—thereby transforming Dostoevsky’s characters from talked-about objects into self-speaking, conversing subjects.In Bakhtin’s view, a key distinction between the polyphonic novel and the monological novel lies in the different ways the author manifests their ideas. Bakhtin classifies Tolstoy’s novels as monological precisely because they are essentially monophonic, where no second voice of equal importance emerges. The monologic nature of such novels is also evident in Tolstoy’s refusal to engage his characters in equal dialogue; the authorial voice within the work consistently plays the role of the finalized arbiter. Dostoevsky’s polyphonic novels, in contrast, broke with the long-established artistic conventions of the monological novel. It is crucial to note that while the author’s ideas do not dominate in the polyphonic novel, this does not imply the absence of the author’s advocated ideas. The author is still actively expressing their ideas, but this activity possesses a special dialogic quality. Here, the authorial voice is no longer an indisputable voice towering above the dialogue; instead, it becomes one voice among many—a voice that characters can dispute and engage with on an equal footing. This signifies a fundamental transformation in the relationship between the author and protagonist. In discussing this issue, this article adopts a distinctive methodological approach: it elucidates the characteristics of how Dostoevsky expresses his ideas through his meaningful depictions of his favored protagonists.
		2026 Vol. 56 (7): 155-167 [Abstract] ( 0 ) [HTML 1KB] [PDF 754KB] ( 0 )

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