량치차오의 '中國之武士道' 저술을 통한 이상적 국민성의 기획

Abstract

Liang Qi-chao(梁啓超: 1873-1927), a representative leader of modern China, had profoundly contemplated on how to direct and lead his country which had been suffering from the devastations of Western and Japanese invasions. From the perspective of the Institutional Reform and Enlightenment, he had reflected deeply on the Western and Japanese spiritual culture as perpetrators as well as on the Chinese spiritual culture as victims and sought ways to overcome national crisis toward a nationalistic and militaristic direction. One of the most important methods was to establish ‘China's Way of the Warrior(中國之武士道)' and through related writings he devoted himself to enlightenment and education. Although his ways of dealing with the crisis had some nationalistic limitations, it seems clear that they are neither the dominant logic of the strong nor the ethnocentrism of the Han Chinese. What Liang Qi-chao really wanted was to find out about a way to build a robust leadership that could direct China to enhance the wealth and strengthen military forces and thus should be internalized to the public as well in the face of the turbulent period once again during the time in Chinese history. To make it happen, the first thing to be done is to rebuild a strong leadership through ‘China’s Way of the Warrior’ developed out of the historical traces and legacies with the focus of the ‘Shi(士)’ such as Ancient Warrior class and literary elites who sought to properly lead the society and culture during the historical turmoil in the early Ancient Spring and Autumn Period and Qin-Han Dynasties. Next, by enlightening and educating the public through the established practices of the Way of the Warrior, it was believed that the public could internalize the martial spirit that Liang Qi-Chao had attempted to institutionalize as the ideal national character and furthermore to create Chinese spirit by combining it with other active mindset such as patriotism and strong will. In these processes, he referred to the experiences of Japanese reform as a role model for the Enlightenment of his own and had direct stimuli and insights from Japan's ‘Way of the Warrior.’ Moreover, the fall of Joseon Dynasty also provided Liang Qi-chao with the experience of learning from other’s faults. Finally, to put it in a nutshell, the ideological mechanisms of Liang Qi-chao can be illustrated as follows: ⓛ Establishment of ‘Way of the Warrior’ as ethics for the warrior ⇒ (affecting the public) ⇒ ② Realization of ‘The Martial Sprit’ as an ideal national character (being combined with patriotism, strong will, etc.) ⇒ ③ Operation of the martial spirit as ‘National Spirit’ (national mentality). Furthermore, it seems that the mechanisms produce a virtuous cycle again, in turn, from ③ Operation of ‘National Spirit’ to ① Establishment of ‘Way of the Warrior’.