On October 9, 2025, the 80th session of the Red Rock Lecture Series was successfully held in Room 412, School of Marxism, Chongqing University. Professor Zhou Wen from the School of Marxism, Fudan University, was invited to deliver a special lecture entitled "Evolution of the Concept of Modernization and Chinese-StyleModernization". The lecture was chaired by Professor Feng Yanli, Dean of the School of Marxism, and was actively attended by faculty and students of the school with a vibrant interactive atmosphere.
At the beginning of the lecture, Professor Zhou Wen started with "The Origin of Modernization", pointing out that modernization is a global historical phenomenon marked by the drastic transformation of human society from traditional to modern since the Industrial Revolution, triggering profound and all-round changes. He interpreted the concept of modernization from a multidisciplinary perspective. When elaborating on the connotation of modernization, Professor Zhou noted that for a long time, some people have equated "modernization" with "Westernization", a view that is erroneous. Chinese modernization has in fact broken the long-standing monopoly of Western-style modernization, proven the diversity of paths to modernization, and provided a new option for developing countries to explore modernization paths suited to their own national conditions. In the section on "The Rise of Modernization", he emphasized that modernization is fundamentally founded on the Industrial Revolution, without which modernization would be impossible. The Industrial Revolution has thus become a "watershed" between the modernization processes of the Western and non-Western worlds.
Drawing on academic research practices, Professor Zhou stressed that two key directions must be upheld in Marxist theoretical research: first, academic works must deeply address real-world issues and provide sound answers to the questions of the times, the world, the people, and history; second, scholars must thoroughly study literature and revitalize theory. By deeply engaging with Party documents and the essence of General Secretary Xi Jinping's important speeches, Marxist theory can truly become an "ideological weapon" for guiding practice and solving problems.
At the conclusion of the lecture, Dean Feng Yanli expressed sincere gratitude to Professor Zhou. This lecture integrated theory with practice, profoundly expounding the core connotation of modernization while clarifying the theoretical logic and practical paths of Chinese modernization. Faculty and students present engaged in heated discussions on cutting-edge topics related to modernization, and Professor Zhou responded to each question in detail, helping them deepen their understanding of the lecture's content.
