In the history of Peking University, Mr. Cai Yuanpei has always occupied a very important position. It was in Cai Yuanpei's time that Peking University truly established its position as the highest institution of learning in China. 19 16 to 1927, in domestic politics, it was a dark age of warlord melee, but in the field of academic thought, it is undeniable that it was a glorious golden age, with famous masters, such as Chen Duxiu, Li Dazhao, Lu Xun, Liang Shuming and Hu Shi. There are radical Marxists, conservative feudalists and bourgeois democrats. No matter what point of view, Peking University can find its own classroom at this time.
This is another time to select talents only in a compromise way. From the selection of professors to the admission of students, talents come first. The introduction of professors depends on strength rather than academic qualifications. In order to help young Hu Shi teach at Peking University and create conditions for him to falsify his academic qualifications, many professors do not have master's or doctor's degrees, and some even have never been to university. These are not the criteria for judging. In terms of enrollment, many cultural wizards with partial subjects, some even scored zero in a single subject, were also admitted to Peking University, and many of these people later became masters in various fields.
Freedom of thought is the life of culture and scholarship. Without freedom, there will be no prosperity of cultural undertakings. But for social politics, freedom usually leads to chaos, and how much social unrest is in the name of freedom, which the government cannot tolerate. As the position of the New Culture Movement, Peking University played an important role in the spread of Marxism, greatly influenced the social and political thoughts at that time, and provided important ideological preparation for the birth of the May 4th Movement.
It can be said that without the freedom of thought of Peking University, there would be no May 4th Movement. It was through the May 4th Movement that we saw the strength of students and workers in China and provided ideological preparation for the birth of the China * * * production party. There is no doubt that we should commemorate its value.
But from another point of view, this freedom is a disaster for the government, a force that shakes the ruling foundation. Many people have begun to reflect on its shortcomings. After the May 4th Movement, students were enthusiastic about participating in politics, and some took encouraging students to participate in politics as a step to realize their personal political attempts. The environment for students to study with peace of mind is destroyed, and they threaten to strike classes at every turn, and even expel teachers from time to time.
If we look at the history of Peking University 100 years, can we say that the painful memories of the country in the 1960s and 1970s and the late 1980s are also related to this freedom?