Sci-Fi Films: “War of Survival”

The best-performing outputs of the American movie studios depict science fiction catastrophes， fantasy， and star wars， because they include attractive visual effects and require the latest technology which produces thrilling and challenging products. But there are other reasons too. Traditional movie genres such as crime， detective， spy， romance and even X-rated have become cliché –difficult to be renovated and sometimes overreaching with carelessness. Though still in need， they are polarized. The polar tendency is far beyond the control of filmmakers. The trends are born of social statistics or pure commercial statistics， but the final veto power lies in box office returns.

I am most interested in the real creative motives of “planners，” including producers， screenwriters and directors， behind entertainment or commercial purposes. Their motives undoubtedly reflect what audiences feel and need， which can be considered the emotional tendencies of the world today. Lacking distinctive political guidance， planners habitual thinking has become the “natural mood”showcasing Western hegemony， which has dominated the world for centuries.

Or I should put it this way： Such a tendency is not a thing in itself. Planners only passively reflect it， cater to it， and perhaps tease it. Rather， our world is navigated by helmsmen including politicians， scientists， philosophers， and literati as well as fantasy makers， who join hands without noticing， creating history， the history of universe. It thus becomes serious.

Science fiction movies are basically about “war of survival”： Aliens invade the Earth or mad scientists attempt to control the world， even the universe –resulting in a struggle between life and death， justice and evil， and brightness and darkness. Of course， the game always ends with the victory of science and justice represented by the United States.

I call it “war of survival” because it is flavored by Western political theory that has been stressed again and again by right-wing politicians： Whats the symbol of a mature nation？ Politics. A mature nation or politician knows a friend from an enemy and is always ready for war. Only with such an ethos can a nation survive and move forward. This is what I mean by “war of survival.” Its only a matter of historical opportunity when we see things from perspectives of race or class. Whatever perspective， “war as solution”has always been the supreme， decisive show of power.

The metaphysics for such political theory is dominated by “ontology，” which is based on the principle of hierarchy. Digging deeper， well find a “battle of gods” behind the screen.

A nation can disguise monarchy and aristocracy as democracy， play the role of tyrant and promote hegemony for the sake of its interests.Such Western ideology has been delivered to the “global village.” As space technology develops， the solar system has been turned from theoretical space to possible. Westerners， who expanded their territory from land to ocean， are working hard to occupy the space of the universe. This is what Carl Schmitt （1888-1985） described as a natural track of land-sea-air expansion for survival.

We dont have to waste time counting the bloody tragedies in history because they are so numerous， nor waste efforts unveiling the beasts disguised as democracy. They are all reality， and their real purpose is to feed the needs of the “will of power.” For centuries， all great thinkers – Machiavelli， Hobbes， Kant， Hegel， Marx， Neitzsche， Schmitt， and Straus – have enlightened the world with the same idea： The key is kindness. No one wants to be perceived as unkind， so the squeezers are often the ones being robbed.

How can anyone stop a tradition that has dominated the Western world for such a long time from flowing into outer space？ Science fiction films are only a piece of the silently transforming influence of adolescent education. Children follow the footprints of their parents and repeat their actions on a larger scale. So， “Move！ Fight for the ‘New World in the sunshine of the universe！”

Science fiction movies swarm in， branded with Western colonial hegemony disguised as freedom and democracy. Western countries， Americans particularly， imagine aliens as rulers who want to control the universe as they do. They arrange things this way because they consider the will of power a universal truth based on their thinking process and code of conduct. It is true on the Earth； it must be true in the universe. Thats the way it is.

Unfortunately， our world has always been dominated by such a thinking formula and code of conduct. Any others are either relegated or considered exceptions to the rule. Therefore， no one cares about the tireless creation of science fiction movies about the “war of survival” aiming to educate men on the Earth about their present and future， so if aliens do come， we will be prepared for the “war of survival.”

Anyone There in the Depth of Peace and Wild？ – My Views on Events， Literature and Movies （3 volumes）

By Zhang Zhiyang， Horizon Books， Shanghai Peoples Publishing House， January 2015

Zhang Zhiyang is considered a true scholar with original philosophy in academic circles in China as well as the most respected writer in the realm of philosophy in the Chinese language. He was the first to propose ideas of existential philosophy， language philosophy and traumatic memories， leading the country quietly towards global trends of philosophical thought while keeping himself sober and independent.

This publication includes three volumes of prose： “Events： Roundelay of the Shadow in Memories，” “Novels： The Bell of the Evening Prayer in Verona，” and “Movies： Aria on the E String.” Through his rare， precious personal memories， Zhang ponders and shares insights on novels he read and movies he had watched， reflecting his unique disposition – the result of collision of practice and concept.

Zhang Zhiyang was born in 1940 in Wuhan， the provincial seat of Hubei. He stepped into academic circles in 1980 and began working for the Institute for Social Ethics of the Research Center for Social Sciences under University of Hainan in 1994. Since“ideological emancipation” in the 1980s， he has maintained his academic personality while continuing study in the field. Over the last three decades of the “new era，” scholarly circles， of the Chinese language in particular， seemed to serve as a “racetrack” for Western theories： All schools and trends poured in and shifted quickly， misleading many people. Zhang Zhiyang， however， held firm. He even played a central role by grabbing the switch lever for academic hot topics in sectors of existential philosophy， language philosophy， religious philosophy， and political philosophy while staying alert with frequent introspection， the right start for the Chinese-language academic independence.

Oriental and Western Cultures and Their Philosophies

By Liang Shuming， Horizon Books， Shanghai Peoples Publishing House， January 2015

The book that made modern Chinese scholar Liang Shuming（1893-1988） famous， Oriental and Western Cultures and Their Philosophies is considered a groundbreaking work for NeoConfucianism in contemporary China. First published in 1921 and reprinted many times， it is widely acclaimed as a classic debating Oriental and Western cultures and has been translated into more than 10 languages， including English， French， and Japanese.

Liang Shuming developed a school of his own during a tide of intense anti-tradition movements， calling for the true spirit of Confucian culture. In the book， he fused the Western irrationalism with traditional Chinese thought for the comparison between the cultures of East and West， seeking for answers to questions such as “Whats the value of Chinese inherent culture？” “Why hasnt traditional Chinese culture given birth to science and technology？”and “Where should Chinese culture go？” For him， Oriental culture should stay confident and pick up favorable traits of Western culture to upgrade itself rather than blindly negating itself in favor of wholesale Westernization.

Liang Shuming was dubbed one of the most independent thinkers and social practitioners with the strongest character in 20th-Century China. Despite being formally educated only through middle school， Liang taught at Peking University and then quit his job for rural projects. With the motto of“learning about old China for the sake of new China，” he spared no efforts in finding the key to puzzles of the era.

His major works include The Theory of Rural Construction， Main Ideas of Chinese Culture， and Public Feeling and Life.

My Chinese Neighbors： Life and Landscape in the Eyes of Uchiyama Kanzo

By Uchiyama Kanzo， translated by Zhao He， World Publishing Corporation， January 2015

Also known as Wu Qishan in Chinese， Uchiyama Kanzo was a native of Okayama， Japan. Kanzo ran a bookstore in Shanghai between 1917 and 1945 and was a close friend to Lu Xun， a wellknown Chinese writer. He contributed greatly to the Sino-Japanese friendship in his later years and died of illness in Beijing in 1959.

In a vivid， humorous tone， the author recounted his 35 years of experience living in Shanghai and expressed his respect for the wisdom of the Chinese people as well as his faith in the building of New China.

Takeji Yoshikawa， director of Beijing Japanese Culture Center， opined that Chinese culture can be divided into two parts： written and living culture. What Mr. Kanzo did was to depict a real picture of Chinese life through thorough observation， which was neglected by the majority of Japanese experts.