John Dewey’s legacy to China and the problems in Chinese society

Abstract

At the turn of the twenty-first century, when the call for democracy in China once again becomes intense, it is crucial to pause and to think over what democracy means and in what ways the significances of democracy resonates with Chinese people. Almost a century ago, John Dewey elaborated his understandings of democracy to the Chinese people and made a number of suggestions about how they might work towards democracy. This article examines Dewey's notion of democracy and his legacy to Chinese people, the circumstances that restricted the wider acceptance of Dewey’s ideas in China, and some problems in Chinese society that militate against their uptake.