It is a developing and changing philosophical category. Humanism came into being as human beings entered the civilized period, but as a trend of thought and theory of the times, humanitarianism was gradually formed after the15th century, initially manifested in literature and art, and then gradually penetrated into other fields.
The word "humanitarianism" comes from the Latin humanism. In ancient Rome, it was extended to an educational system with humanitarianism, which could promote the maximum development of individual talents. /kloc-the emerging bourgeois thinkers in the 0/5th century said that humanitarianism refers to the Renaissance spirit, that is, it requires that people's talents be fully developed by learning and carrying forward the ancient Greek and Roman cultures. In the process of bourgeois revolution, humanitarianism opposed feudal church autocracy and demanded the full development of human personality. Until the19th century, humanitarianism has been an important ideological weapon for the bourgeoisie to establish and consolidate the capitalist system. With the failure of the bourgeois revolution and the upsurge of the proletarian revolutionary movement, this humanitarian theory and ideological trend gradually lost its historical role of progress. In modern times, although western thinkers have not given up the banner of humanitarianism, their humanitarianism theory is more or less nihilistic or pessimistic.
It is Marxism that truly criticizes and inherits bourgeois humanism and absorbs and develops its reasonable content. Marxism not only attaches importance to the status and value of human beings, but also regards the free and all-round development of all human beings as the goal of human liberation, and points out the specific conditions needed to realize this ideal goal. In China, there are different understandings of humanitarian issues. A representative view holds that humanitarianism, as a world view and a historical view, is idealistic, while Marxists should adhere to and carry forward revolutionary humanitarianism and socialist humanitarianism as ethical principles and moral norms.
Bourgeois humanitarianism inherited and developed the essence of ancient Greek humanitarianism, broke through the shackles of God-centered thought under the rule of the medieval church, advocated that man was a part of nature and dominated it, and believed that the pursuit of happiness was the natural right of man and the driving force of social development. According to this theory, the emerging bourgeoisie mercilessly criticized the asceticism of the feudal church, which regarded sensuality and secular life as evils, and affirmed that people have the right to enjoy all happiness in the world, thus spreading the progressive ideas of conquering nature, pursuing happiness in life, creating freely, striving for individual liberation and establishing a just social system. The progressive role of bourgeois humanism at that time made it an ideological weapon of bourgeois revolution against feudal church autocracy.
From the Renaissance in Europe to the Enlightenment in the18th century, most humanitarians were artists, writers, thinkers and scientists, who proposed or publicized bourgeois humanitarianism in their different fields. /kloc-the humanitarian theory of French enlightenment thinkers in the 0 th and 8 th centuries requires that everything in reality should conform to human rationality. This rational humanism directly attacked the feudal autocracy in politics, economy and ideology, and drew a blueprint for the capitalist system that was about to win, thus becoming a prelude to the bourgeois revolution. After the victory of the French Revolution, the Declaration of Human Rights and Civil Rights, as the preface of the first French Constitution, was a record of bourgeois humanitarian victory. However, the capitalist system is not an ideal social system for human beings. Long before the victory of the bourgeois revolution, some enlightenment thinkers had discovered the contradiction of humanitarianism itself and tried to find a solution. However, they fail to see that capitalist private ownership is the root of these contradictions, and the humanitarianism they advocate is precisely to maintain this system, so it is impossible to find a real solution to the contradictions by bourgeois humanitarianism itself. Theoretically speaking, bourgeois humanitarianism is completely divorced from social relations when examining people, and regards people as natural persons, and takes this as a starting point to demonstrate people's pursuit and yearning. This makes it fall into an abstract theory of human nature and has the illusion of being super-class and super-era. However, the pursuit of freedom and enjoyment of rights and a just social system are not abstract in this abstract theory of human nature. They are based on private ownership and centered on individualism, which clearly shows the hypocrisy of bourgeois humanism.
With the development of capitalism to the stage of imperialism, the theory of openly abandoning the humanitarian banner has also appeared accordingly. In the two world wars in the first half of the 20th century, fascist groups in Germany, Italy, Japan and other countries pursued various dehumanizing policies, which reflected the anti-humanity nature of the monopoly bourgeoisie. However, there are a large number of upright people in the world, including some famous scholars, scientists, artists and writers. They still believe in the traditional bourgeois humanism, and from this principle, they attack all kinds of crimes against humanity in the capitalist world, oppose the war of aggression and safeguard world peace.
Humanitarianism still occupies a very important position in modern western philosophy. Many schools in modern western philosophy, such as existentialism, neo-Thomas doctrine, individualism, pragmatism, Frankfurt School, etc., often pretend to praise human values, defend human dignity, improve human status, and study human conditions, characteristics, future and interests with modern eyes. Although the representatives of these schools hold conflicting positions on some major issues, most of them call themselves humanists, or at least advocates of humanitarianism. Their common concerns are: humanity, personality, man and technology, and the idea of realizing humanity.
In modern western philosophy, many schools and their representatives put forward their own ideas of saving mankind. Sartre believes that transcendence and subjectivity are the means to realize human nature. In his view, to become a human being, people need to surpass themselves and seek a higher purpose in life. The direction of transcendence always points to the future. The choice of "investing in the future" is determined by the individual's subjectivity, and human nature can only be realized in a series of free choices. In Jaspers' view, the purpose of transcendence is God, and the real way for human existence is apocalyptic religion and philosophy. Restoring human nature depends on the power of love, the openness of reason and the desire to communicate with transcendental beings.
Maridan tried to use Shinto as a means to realize human nature and encouraged people to create a humanized social environment with spiritual things and religious beliefs. He pointed out that the Christian philosophy of life guides the Christian society which enjoys human rights and dignity. In this society, people of different races and cultural traditions work together to accomplish the humanitarian cause in the world.
Most thinkers of Frankfurt School regard love as a lever to realize human nature. Fromm believes that human suffering is due to lack of love. Although the lack of love can't lead to physical death, it is the root that drives people to the grave. However, the will to life is deeply rooted in the human body, and as a biological instinct, it is manifested in the body and spirit. This is the desire for life and the foundation of love. Marcuse imagined that in an unfettered civilization, the relationship between man and nature and between people can be fully eroticized, and human freedom and happiness can be fully realized here. Schmidt believes that human nature can be realized through love. Because love is a happy state, and getting this state depends on loving someone or something. Moreover, love improves people's condition, provides the meaning of life and enables people to fully develop.
Socialist Humanitarianism In the discussion on humanitarianism, the theoretical circle in China has formed a representative view, that is, defining socialist humanitarianism as an integral part of socialist ideology is one of the standards for adjusting the relationship between people in the ethical field. It requires society to care for and sympathize with individuals and people, respect individuals' contribution to society, respect personality, safeguard the basic rights of social members and promote the all-round development of all socialist workers.
As the ethical principles and moral norms of people in socialist society, socialist humanism is based on the socialist economy, adapts to the socialist political system, and is based on the Marxist world outlook and historical view. Socialist humanitarianism is the continuation and development of "revolutionary humanitarianism". "Revolutionary humanitarianism" is a humanitarianism associated with the revolutionary struggle of the proletariat and the working people.
Socialist humanitarianism is sincere, concrete and realistic. The establishment of socialist economic system and political system makes the basic interests of individuals and society consistent. This humanitarianism embodies the respect and concern of socialist countries and society for the rights, interests and personality of the overwhelming majority of people, and the concern of the overwhelming majority of people for common interests and mutual respect and concern among people. However, socialist humanitarianism is not realized spontaneously. This requires vigorously strengthening the construction of socialist spiritual civilization with communism as the core, including the ethical norms of socialist humanism.
Fundamentally speaking, the humanitarian relationship between people can only be truly reflected in the proletarian revolutionary movement and in the socialist society. Socialist revolution and socialist construction are restricted by the law of social development. The whole social life includes several levels and many aspects, and moral relationship and moral life are just one of them. Therefore, humanitarianism cannot replace the general law of social development, the objective economic law, the law of class struggle and the law of scientific and cultural development, nor is it the highest criterion governing all social life. The fundamental difference between socialist humanitarianism and bourgeois humanitarianism is that the latter starts from abstract people, takes individualism as the core, appeals to human nature, begs the pity and sympathy of exploiters and oppressors, and opposes class struggle and revolutionary violence. At best, we can only protest against social injustice or seek some temporary satisfaction and comfort without touching the fundamental system of capitalism. Therefore, in the most positive sense, it can only be the ideological basis of utopian socialism. Socialist humanitarianism is based on the materialistic revelation of social contradictions and their laws of movement, on the premise of overthrowing all exploitation systems, on the condition of people's revolution and people's democratic dictatorship, and on collectivism with the unity of individual interests and collective interests, which is realistic humanitarianism in line with the interests of the overwhelming majority of the people.