Page 49 - Journal of Library Science in China, Vol.47, 2021

048 Journal of Library Science in China, Vol.13, 2021

views of GUAN Zhong, the famous minister of the State of Qi in the Spring and Autumn Period,
there goes the line: “therefore, a sovereign who is going to establish one of the most powerful states
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or even to unify the world should start with regarding the people as the roots for his regime” .
In Book of History, it also says that “the people are the foundation of a country, and only when
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the people lead a good life can the country thrive” . It therefore shows that the people-oriented
mindset is not the specialties of the West, but the essence of Chinese traditional culture, and also
the origin of the people-oriented and people-centered philosophy of library governance in present
day. Originating in the Zhou Dynasty, the theory of social education is inherited and developed by
Confucius, Mencius and Confucianism over the dynasties. It “has had a positive impact on shaping
the national character, improving the moral quality of the people, promoting national unity and
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integration, as well as maintaining social harmony and development” . The present-day library’s
role in social education and reading promotion are both indebted to this theory. Chinese academic
culture has always had a tradition of being eclectic and inclusive, and advocates the integration
and development of multiculturalism. The basic theoretical system of library science with Chinese
characteristics should inherit this fine academic tradition, absorbing and learning from all the
outstanding philosophical and cultural achievements from home and abroad.
Although China’s library science in the modern sense is introduced from the West, ancient
Chinese library science thoughts, as well as the theories and methods of bibliography, collage
studies, classical documents studies, edition studies and other disciplines, all play a key role in
establishing the basic theory of Chinese library science. For instance, CHENG Ju’s exposition on
the role of “guange”, or the library, in “advising administration” and “cultivating people”, ZHANG
Xuecheng’s analysis of the relationship between “management of books” and “scholarship”
reflected in his thought of “reviewing academic development and identifying the origin” , the
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library value rationality contained in “collecting books and preaching ideas” derived from the
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Chinese philosophical saying of “literature is the vehicle of ideas” , are all academic nutrients for
the basic theoretical system of library science with Chinese characteristics.
(2) National realities
The fundamental theoretical research of library science should be based on the national
circumstances and oriented towards solving practical issues. Then, what are China’s national
realties? First of all, as socialism with Chinese characteristics has entered a new era, the main
contradiction in our society has been transformed into the contradiction between the ever-growing
needs of the people for a better life and unbalanced and inadequate development. The people’s
aspiration for a better life includes not only material life, but also spiritual and cultural life. The
problem of unbalanced and insufficient development in China’s public cultural undertakings and
librarianship is still quite prominent. The needs for development should become the strongest
driving force for the innovation of the fundamental theory of library science, which shall provide
Chinese ideas and Chinese solutions for solving the practical problems and contradictions specific
to China’s librarianship and public cultural undertakings. Secondly, China has established the