Change yourself or change the world?

     After reading Mr. Bo Yang's book, *The Ugly Chinaman*, I was deeply moved. I don't agree with all of Mr. Bo Yang's views, such as the romanization of Chinese characters and the idea that China should blindly copy the West because the West is more advanced. However, Mr. Bo Yang's sharp writing truly opened a new window for me to understand contemporary Chinese social phenomena. There are two views on personality among Chinese people: one is the ideal personality, which appears in the works of sages and exists in people's minds; the other is the realistic personality, which is prevalent in real life and represents people's true expectations of themselves. Under this expectation, there is basically no sense of guilt in doing things. As for the ideal personality, this is what everyone expects of others. People hope that others can be like those described by sages, while they themselves use a different set of standards to judge themselves. The result is that no one uses the standards of the ideal personality to judge themselves. The idea of ​​being strict with oneself and lenient with others is a requirement for others.

    Perhaps the standards for an ideal personality are too high, making them unattainable for most. However, this cannot be a valid excuse. It's like a factory setting standards for its products: using a first-class standard often results in a second-class product, a second-class standard in a third-class product, and so on. Therefore, when people strive for an ideal personality, they should at least achieve a near-ideal one. Unbeknownst to them, everyone becomes a substandard product. Those who barely reach the near-ideal become fools, idiots, or pushovers. Smart people know to adapt to the times; like in rock-paper-scissors, if everyone else throws, why should I throw scissors? Moreover, these self-proclaimed philosophers believe they understand the essence of society: "If a person doesn't act for themselves, they'll be punished by heaven." Although "acting for oneself" here refers to self-cultivation, these philosophers interpret it in their own way, arbitrarily violating the wishes of their ancestors and using various means to force them to conform.

    Not only that, they tirelessly educate their next generation, teaching them so-called survival skills. There is one eternally unchanging topic in China: corruption. As a university student in contemporary China, I can't help but talk about corruption. I wouldn't dare call myself a responsible young person if I didn't discuss corruption and the dark side of Chinese society. Yet, whenever I do, I feel like a complete idiot. When a classmate discusses this topic with me, I always act incredibly indignant, passionately condemning both fallen and still-fallen corrupt officials. But at the same time, my classmate remains remarkably calm. He earnestly lectures me like a wise man, saying, "Corruption is widespread. Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. We should face the problem squarely, and we should tolerate what is tolerable." Of course, I don't give up. I cite many examples of honest officials throughout history, from both East and West, trying to argue that society is still more about justice and that there should be zero tolerance for corruption. Just as I was brimming with confidence, believing he would be speechless, he unexpectedly smiled slightly and said earnestly again, "Those are all superficial appearances. Everyone is selfish. You'll understand when you start working." These words didn't sound like something a peer would say to me; they sounded more like something my dad or grandpa would say. Seeing that I was about to speak, he added earnestly, "My dad told me that all civil servants these days are corrupt. The difference is how much they embezzle. When we start working, it's okay if we embezzle a little." Suddenly, I didn't dislike him as much anymore, because I realized his father was even more detestable. Compared to his father, a wise old man who had seen the harsh realities of Chinese officialdom, he was at most a child still wearing open-crotch pants and urinating and defecating everywhere. In his world, officials and corruption lived happily ever after, including himself. I was consumed by rage and malice, but with all my energy channels severed, it was too late to try and turn my bicycle into a motorcycle. The positive energy I lost is likely gone forever. It seems that fools like me are destined for a violent end, while philosophers will live happily ever after.

    We shouldn't take social phenomena for granted just because they are common. Truth isn't determined by the majority, but by the rationality of the majority; even the majority has moments of irrationality. There's a popular saying now: "Since you can't change the world, you must change yourself." This statement is untenable and even reactionary. Leaving aside the major social problem of corruption, let's take the example of whether or not to help an elderly person who has fallen. When you see an elderly person fall and no one helps them up, you might initially want to help them up. However, upon reflection, you think, "Since I can't change the world, I'll change myself." You transform yourself from a passionate young person ready to help into a cold-blooded bystander. Over time, even the last remaining bit of innate "goodness" within you is extinguished by this unchangeable world. Changing social values ​​cannot be achieved overnight; it requires each of us to have the determination to change the world, to re-establish correct values, and to awaken our numb or increasingly numb hearts in order to fundamentally solve many of today's social problems.