Study Times - October 2, 2026

Requirements for Developing Socialist Culture with Chinese Characteristics in the New Era

By: 崔唯航

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Cultural prosperity and flourishing is an important hallmark of Chinese modernization. General Secretary Xi Jinping has emphasized: "We must anchor ourselves to the strategic goal of building a strong culture by 2035, uphold Marxism as the fundamental guiding ideology, take root in the profound and extensive Chinese civilization, follow the trend of information technology development, and continuously develop socialist culture with Chinese characteristics for the new era that possesses a powerful force of ideological guidance, spiritual cohesion, value appeal, and international influence, continuously strengthen the people's spiritual strength, and consolidate the cultural foundation for building a strong country and national rejuvenation." Developing socialist culture with Chinese characteristics for the new era that possesses a powerful force of ideological guidance, spiritual cohesion, value appeal, and international influence (hereinafter referred to as the "Four Forces") has charted the forward direction for building a socialist cultural power, providing ideological guidance, gathering spiritual strength, enhancing value identification, and expanding global vision for completing the building of a cultural power. To profoundly grasp the requirements for developing socialist culture with Chinese characteristics in the new era, the key lies in tracing its evolutionary lineage, discerning its internal logic, and precisely anchoring the practical pathways for promoting its implementation and effectiveness during the 15th Five-Year Plan period.

The "Four Forces" requirement is the result of continuously deepening understanding of the laws governing cultural development in the new era

The requirements for cultural development in the new era have been gradually proposed and developed alongside practical exploration. From strengthening cultural confidence, to proposing the Two Integrations and cultural subjectivity, and then to establishing the "Four Forces" and incorporating them into the outline of the 15th Five-Year Plan, each leap in understanding has precisely responded to a question of the era, and each deepening of theory has pushed the previous round of exploration to new depths

Cultural confidence constitutes the logical starting point of this progression and is the spiritual cornerstone of all strategic deployments. General Secretary Xi Jinping has pointed out that "cultural confidence is a more fundamental, broader, and deeper form of confidence," that"cultural confidence is a more basic, more profound, and more enduring force," and that"culture is the soul of a country and a nation." It is precisely on the basis of this cultural confidence that cultural development has been able to cast off blind obedience to foreign theories and dogmatic paths, achieve spiritual independence and self-reliance, and persist in taking its own path

The establishment of cultural subjectivity and the advancement of the Two Integrations have not only rooted cultural confidence deeply in history, but have also driven a historic shift in the yardstick for measuring culture from internal mentality toward external capability. In June 2023, General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out that"cultural confidence comes from our cultural subjectivity," that"the 'Second Integration' is another ideological emancipation," and that"any culture, if it is to stand firm, go far, and possess leading force, cohesive force, shaping force, and radiating force, must have its own subjectivity." Since then, the focus of cultural development has shifted toward whether confidence is firm and whether subjectivity is solid, no longer remaining at the level of subjective cognition, but rather examining whether it can be transformed into perceptible forces of guidance, cohesion, shaping, and radiation. In October of the same year, General Secretary Xi Jinping made important instructions on propaganda, ideological, and cultural work, deploying"seven efforts" and emphasizing"fully stimulating the cultural innovation and creativity vitality of the entire nation." This stage achieved a dual leap: logically, the question deepened from"whether we have confidence" to"where our confidence is rooted"; in terms of evaluation, the yardstick leaped from internal mentality to externalized capability. This is the key transition in the continuous deepening of cultural requirements in the new era

In October 2024, at the 17th collective study session of the Political Bureau of the 20th Central Committee, General Secretary Xi Jinping systematically elaborated the strategic path for building a cultural power, clearly proposing to"continuously develop socialist culture with Chinese characteristics for the new era that possesses a powerful force of ideological guidance, spiritual cohesion, value appeal, and international influence, continuously strengthen the people's spiritual strength, and consolidate the cultural foundation for building a strong country and national rejuvenation." In October 2025, the Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Party proposed to"develop socialist culture with Chinese characteristics for the new era that possesses a powerful force of ideological guidance, spiritual cohesion, value appeal, and international influence, and solidly advance the building of a cultural power." This formulation was also included in the outline of the 15th Five-Year Plan, becoming a common practical yardstick that governs cultural work across all fields and tests the effectiveness of all construction efforts

The "Four Forces" requirement is an organic whole in which all parts are interconnected

Ideological guidance, spiritual cohesion, value appeal, and international influence precisely respond to the fundamental questions of cultural development in the new era: "what banner to raise, where to gather, with what to transform people, and how to dialogue with the world." The ordering of the four strictly follows the evolutionary logic from ideological core to spiritual foundation, then to value presentation and international image. Together they construct a"concentric circles" system extending from the Party to the masses, from the local to the global; if the internal foundation is not solid, external radiation cannot unfold

Ideological guidance is the soul, anchoring the banner and direction, and occupying the fundamental position in the "Four Forces" system. General Secretary Xi Jinping has emphasized that ideological work"is an extremely important task of the Party, work that establishes the heart of the country and the soul of the nation." The outline of the 15th Five-Year Plan places"upholding the guiding position of Marxism in the realm of ideology" before the formulation of the "Four Forces," profoundly revealing that the source of ideological guidance lies in a constant source of new ideas or vitality, and that only by upholding the correct path can effective guidance be achieved. General Secretary Xi Jinping has pointed out that"to uphold integrity means upholding the fundamental system of Marxism's guiding position in the realm of ideology, upholding the fundamental requirements of the 'Two Integrations,' upholding the Party's cultural leadership and the Chinese nation's cultural subjectivity; to innovate means creating new ideas, new discourse, new mechanisms, and new forms," which is a further elaboration of this dialectical relationship. In the final analysis, the effectiveness of ideological guidance depends on whether the Party's innovative theory can truly unite minds and forge souls, on whether Chinese philosophy and social sciences have established an independent knowledge system, and moreover on whether mainstream ideological and public opinion can stand firm, speak clearly, and spread widely in the complex and turbulent public opinion arena

Spiritual cohesion is the foundation, anchoring the task of forging the more than 1.4 billion Chinese people into a spiritual community. General Secretary Xi Jinping has emphasized that"the 'strength' of a cultural power must ultimately be reflected in the people's ideological realm, spiritual state, and cultural cultivation." This powerful centripetal force originates from shared value identification, historical memory, life prospects, and struggle practices. The unifying pursuit of Chinese civilization's"inward cohesion" provides its deepest civilizational undertone, while core socialist values successfully transform it into the concentrated embodiment of contemporary Chinese spirit.The more abundant the spiritual nourishment the people draw from it, the tighter the emotional bonds of the Chinese nation, and the more solid the ideological foundation for joint struggle

Value appeal is the inner core, anchoring how culture moistens the soul and cultivates character. General Secretary Xi Jinping has emphasized that"we must pay greater attention to using culture to transform people and using culture to educate people, continuously enriching the people's spiritual world and promoting the well-rounded development of the individual." Appeal differs from coercive force; its power derives from the spiritual height and ideological depth of culture itself, relying on the profound and extensive nature of fine traditional Chinese culture, the lofty faith of revolutionary culture, and the vigorous vitality of advanced socialist culture to move people. Value appeal is the most difficult to quantify, yet it best tests the actual effectiveness of cultural development. It is not reflected in the scale or quantity of cultural facilities, but directly externalizes itself in the positive and upward spiritual outlook and character formation of the whole society

International influence is the extension, anchoring how Chinese culture engages in equal dialogue and mutual learning with the world. General Secretary Xi Jinping has emphasized"strengthening the concept of using culture to dialogue with the world" and that"diverse civilizations are the natural color of the world." International influence is the natural result and comprehensive reflection of the outward radiation of the first three forces: if ideological guidance is lacking, China's narrative will lose its backbone; if spiritual cohesion is deficient, the national image will lose its profound foundation; if value appeal is absent, Chinese culture will find it difficult to manifest its unique charm. Therefore, whether international communication effectiveness is high or low fundamentally depends on how solid domestic cultural development is. General Secretary Xi Jinping has pointed out that"presenting a credible, lovable, and respectable image of China"; these three, from a progressive perspective, confirm the generative logic from the internal to the external — the truth of thought forges"credibility," the sincerity of spirit shapes"lovability," and the beauty of value manifests"respectability."

Implementing the "Four Forces" requirements through the key tasks of cultural development during the 15th Five-Year Plan period

Part Ten of the outline of the 15th Five-Year Plan systematically deploys four core tasks: promoting and practicing core socialist values, vigorously prospering cultural undertakings, accelerating the development of the cultural industry, and enhancing the communication power and influence of Chinese civilization. This is precisely the"construction drawing" for transforming the "Four Forces" blueprint into practical pathways. Benchmarking against the overall requirements of the "Four Forces," current advancement work needs to firmly grasp three key focal points

Seize the fundamental engine of"stimulating the cultural innovation and creativity vitality of the entire nation." The vitality of culture fundamentally lies in innovation and creativity. General Secretary Xi Jinping has explicitly required"making the stimulation of innovation and creativity vitality the central link in deepening reform of the cultural institutional mechanisms." The "Four Forces" presuppose vitality, clarifying that without a constant source of new ideas or vitality, ideological guidance becomes a tree without roots; something without a foundation, spiritual cohesion becomes mere formality, value appeal inevitably becomes dry and pallid, and international influence has no way to emerge. To this end, the outline of the 15th Five-Year Plan has made a series of top-level designs and institutional arrangements: enhancing original cultural creativity, cultivating a high-caliber cultural talent team of vast scale, reasonable structure, and keen innovation, prospering new popular literature and art under internet conditions, improving cultural management systems and production-and-operation mechanisms, refining the cultural industry system and market system, fostering outstanding cultural enterprises and brands, and implementing proactive cultural economic policies. The focal points of these measures are highly consistent, aiming to break down institutional and mechanistic barriers and impel the vast number of cultural workers to"dare to create, be good at creating, and delight in creating."

Follow the trend of information technology development and enhance governance capacity in the cultural sphere. The deep integration of technology and culture is the general trend. General Secretary Xi Jinping has profoundly pointed out that"culture and technology promote each other." Facing the rapid rise of frontier technologies such as artificial intelligence, it is necessary to coordinate high-quality development with high-level security. The outline of the 15th Five-Year Plan clearly proposes advancing the integration of culture and technology, developing new forms of cultural business, and simultaneously emphasizes"enhancing governance capacity in the cultural sphere under informatization conditions." Today, cyberspace has become the strategic main battlefield for building the "Four Forces": if ideological guidance is lost on the online battlefield, it means the foundation is not solid; if value appeal falls silent in virtual space, it means effectiveness has not been manifested. Facing new challenges brought by technologies such as generative AI — information cocoons, algorithmic bias, excessive entertainment — it is necessary to attach equal importance to development and governance: on one hand, ensure precise supply of high-quality digital cultural content; on the other hand, systematically rectify the online ecosystem to make it clear and clean, using the"advance" of technology to empower the"governance" of culture

Deeply cultivate the fertile soil of Chinese civilization and build a system of Chinese civilization symbols with distinctive features and broad recognition. The outline of the 15th Five-Year Plan has made clear deployments:"deeply implement the project for the inheritance and development of fine traditional Chinese culture, and build a system of Chinese civilization symbols." General Secretary Xi Jinping has pointed out that"holding high the cultural subjectivity of the Chinese nation, cherishing, promoting, and developing the treasures of Chinese civilization left behind through the vicissitudes of history, is the historical responsibility and sacred mission of contemporary Chinese Communists." The system of Chinese civilization symbols possesses a unique hub function and is the key link connecting the requirements of the "Four Forces." Building the system of Chinese civilization symbols is of crucial importance and arduous task: it is necessary both to distill the core essence of the symbols and manifest their unique temperament, and also to guard against simplifying the profound and extensive civilization into fragmented symbols; it must be supported by vivid and lively cultural life as its flesh and blood, and rely on the abundant achievements of creative transformation and innovative development as its practical foundation — only thus can one avoid falling into the misconception of"having symbols but no soul"

The outline of the 15th Five-Year Plan has proposed the goals for cultural development during the 15th Five-Year Plan period:"cultural confidence will be firmer, mainstream ideological and public opinion will be continuously consolidated and strengthened, core socialist values will be widely practiced, the cultural innovation and creativity vitality of the entire nation will be continuously stimulated, the people's spiritual and cultural life will be richer, the cohesion of the Chinese nation and the influence of Chinese culture will be significantly enhanced, and the country's soft power will be continuously improved." This important goal is precisely the historical appearance and practical achievement that the building of the "Four Forces" should present during the 15th Five-Year Plan period. Comprehensively implementing the requirements for the development of socialist culture with Chinese characteristics in the new era is, in essence, a profound transformation from theoretical yardstick to practical action. On the new journey, we must anchor ourselves to the goals, make sustained, long-term effort, earnestly refine the blueprint drawn by the outline of the 15th Five-Year Plan into construction drawings and concrete actions, and advance toward the strategic goal of building a cultural power by 2035

(The author is the Dean of the Academy of Marxism, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences)

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A sense of community for the Chinese nation is the foundation of ethnic unity

By: 蒲长春

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General Secretary Xi Jinping has pointed out: "A sense of community for the Chinese nation is the foundation of ethnic unity." This important thesis profoundly reveals the inherent laws of the formation and development of the Chinese nation as a community and the deep-seated foundation of ethnic unity. Since the 18th National Congress of the CPC, our Party has adhered to combining Marxist ethnic theory with the concrete realities of China's ethnic issues and with China's fine traditional culture, has established the consolidation of a sense of community for the Chinese nation as the main line of the Party's ethnic work and all work in ethnic regions in the new era, and has continuously advanced the building of the Chinese nation as a community. To understand this important thesis, one must grasp its scientific connotation and major significance, recognize the requirements of the times, and implement it in the practice of advancing the building of the Chinese nation as a community.

The Major Significance of Consolidating a Sense of Community for the Chinese Nation

A sense of community for the Chinese nation is the foundation of ethnic unity, and consolidating this sense of community is precisely the continuous reinforcement of this foundation. Safeguarding the fundamental interests of all ethnic groups, realizing the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, consolidating and developing socialist ethnic relations, and promoting the innovative development of the Party's ethnic work all require the consolidation of a sense of community for the Chinese nation.

Consolidating a sense of community for the Chinese nation is an inevitable requirement for safeguarding the fundamental interests of all ethnic groups. National unification is where the supreme interests of the state lie, and also where the fundamental interests of people of all ethnic groups lie. Marxist ethnic theory upholds ethnic equality and advocates promoting genuine unity and solidarity between the proletariat and oppressed nations on the principle of ethnic equality. The overall interests of the Chinese nation and the specific interests of each ethnic group possess inherent unity. A sense of community for the Chinese nation and the consciousness of each ethnic group can proceed in parallel without conflict, but they are not parallel or juxtaposed; the interests of the Chinese nation must always be placed first, and the specific interests of each ethnic group must be realized in the process of realizing the overall interests of the Chinese nation as a community. Only when one's own destiny is tightly bound together with the destiny of the state and the Chinese nation can ethnic unity have a deep-seated foundation of interests.

Consolidating a sense of community for the Chinese nation is an inevitable requirement for realizingthe great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. Since modern times, realizingthe great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation has always been the common historical pursuit of all sons and daughters of the Chinese nation. Only when a common goal is further internalized as a common responsibility and common mission can it condense lasting forces of unity and struggle. A sense of community for the Chinese nation transforms this common goal of national rejuvenation into the historical self-awareness of people of all ethnic groups to jointly shoulder responsibility and jointly strive, making the common direction a stable will to act.

Consolidating a sense of community for the Chinese nation is an inevitable requirement for consolidating and developing socialist ethnic relations of equality, unity, mutual assistance, and harmony. After the founding of New China, our Party eliminated ethnic oppression and ethnic discrimination, ensured that people of all ethnic groups jointly became masters of the country, socialist ethnic relations have been continuously consolidated and developed, and ethnic unity has a solid political, institutional, economic, and social foundation. The reason why a sense of community for the Chinese nation is the foundation of ethnic unity lies in that it further transforms the objective commonality formed through joint living and joint development into a conscious identification with a common identity, common interests, common values, and a common destiny, providing ethnic unity with both a realistic foundation and a deep-seated support of hearts converging and spirits relying on each other. Therefore, ethnic unity not only has a realistic foundation but also cannot be separated from the subjective self-awareness and spiritual identification.

Consolidating a sense of community for the Chinese nation is an inevitable requirement for the Party's ethnic work to break new ground (开创新局面, kai xin xin ju mian - "open, new; situation, aspect"). In the new era, while safeguarding the legitimate rights and interests of the masses of all ethnic groups and respecting and tolerating differences, ethnic work should be improved in the direction of enhancing commonality. Protecting differences is necessary, but one must not solidify or strengthen those backward elements within them that affect ethnic progress. The important thesis that "a sense of community for the Chinese nation is the foundation of ethnic unity" provides a basic perspective for the innovative development of ethnic theories, policies, and working methods. The Law of the People's Republic of China on Promoting Ethnic Unity and Progress, which took effect on July 1, 2026, clearly stipulates that "a sense of community for the Chinese nation is the foundation of ethnic unity," and also stipulates that the state adheres to enhancing commonality, respecting and tolerating differences.

The Scientific Connotation of a Sense of Community for the Chinese Nation

Sharing weal and woe (休戚与共, xiu qi yu gong - "rest, worry, and share"), sharing glory and disgrace (荣辱与共, rong ru yu gong - "glory, disgrace, and share"), sharing life and death (生死与共, sheng si yu gong - "life, death,and share"), sharing a common destiny (命运与共, ming yun yu gong - "fate,and share"), collectively embody the community concept of a sense of community for the Chinese nation. The "four sharings" reveal, from the aspects of weal and woe, glory and disgrace, life and death, and destiny, the profound relationship of mutual interdependence and interconnected destinies among all ethnic groups within the Chinese nation as a community. From the mechanism of the formation and maintenance of a community, objective common ties can only form more stable and enduring community bonds when they are further transformed into members' internal sense of belonging and identification. In this sense, a sense of community for the Chinese nation is manifested as a conscious identification with a common identity, common interests, and a common destiny, thereby providing deep-seated ideological and spiritual support for the great unity of the Chinese nation.

To consolidate a sense of community for the Chinese nation, one must establish a correct view of the state, view of history, view of ethnicity, view of culture, and view of religion, strengthen the awareness of the state, awareness of citizenship, and awareness of the rule of law, and firmly strengthen the high-degree identification with the great motherland, the Chinese nation, Chinese culture, the Communist Party of China, and socialism with Chinese characteristics. Establishing the correct "five views" constitutes an important ideological foundation, firmly strengthening the "five identifications" embodies the basic goals, and strengthening the "three awarenesses" is important content. From a scholarly perspective, the"five views" emphasize correct understanding, the"five identifications" emphasize value belonging, and the"three awarenesses" emphasize responsibility and norms, jointly promoting the interconnection of understanding, identification, and conscious action.

A sense of community for the Chinese nation has a profound objective foundation, built upon the pluralistic-and-unitary ethnic entity formed through several thousand years of Chinese history. In their long-term interactions, exchanges, and integration, all ethnic groups have jointly opened up vast territories, jointly created a unified multi-ethnic state, jointly written a glorious history, jointly created a splendid culture, and jointly cultivated a great national spirit, gradually coalescing into a community of shared destiny characterized by intermingled bloodlines, shared beliefs, interconnected cultures, interdependent economies, and mutual affection. Historical materialism holds that social consciousness has its realistic foundation. Marxism holds that:"Consciousness can at any time only be the being that is conscious of, and people's being is their actual process of life." From this basic principle, a sense of community for the Chinese nation is not an abstract concept divorced from the history of the formation and development of the Chinese nation, but rather has as its profound foundation the objective facts of the long-term joint living, joint interaction, and joint development of all ethnic groups. At the same time, objective commonality also needs to be continuously transformed into more conscious identification through sustained social practice and educational guidance.

A sense of community for the Chinese nation has profound historical roots, and has continuously developed in the process of the Chinese nation moving from being-in-itself to being-for-itself. From the long span of history, the more than five thousand years of Chinese civilization history is a history of the continuous accumulation of commonality among all regions and ethnic groups and of the continuous growth and strengthening of the Chinese nation as a community. The tradition of great unification strengthens political identification, economic complementarity and regional connectivity deepen mutual interdependence, cultural mutual learning and integration enhance identification with Chinese culture, and population migration and intermingled residence deepen social integration. The commonality accumulated over ancient times laid the foundation for the awakening of the overall consciousness of the Chinese nation in modern times. Since modern times, in jointly resisting foreign aggression and saving the nation from subjugation, people of all ethnic groups have shed blood together and gathered their hearts together, and a sense of community for the Chinese nation has been unprecedentedly strengthened. After the founding of the Communist Party of China, it has led people of all ethnic groups to realize national independence and people's liberation; after the founding of New China, it has established, consolidated, and developed socialist ethnic relations of equality, unity, mutual assistance, and harmony, providing the political premise and institutional foundation for the consolidation and development of the Chinese nation as a community.

The Requirements of the Times for Consolidating a Sense of Community for the Chinese Nation

Our country is at a critical period for the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, which is the historical orientation of the Party's ethnic work at the present stage. Ethnic work bears on national unification and the consolidation of border areas, bears on ethnic unity and social stability, bears on the maintenance of long-term stability and peace of the state and the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. General Secretary Xi Jinping has pointed out:"Taking the consolidation of a sense of community for the Chinese nation as the main line of the Party's ethnic work and all work in ethnic regions in the new era is a major theoretical and practical achievement of our Party, achieved by adhering to the 'Two Integrations', focusing on the 'two overall situations', deeply summarizing domestic and international experience and lessons in ethnic work, and keenly perceiving the development trends of the Chinese nation as a community."

Living together in harmony (和谐共处, he xie gong chu - "harmony, coexist"), being as close as brothers (手足相亲, shou zu xiang qin - "hands, feet, mutually, close"), and helping each other through mutual vigilance (守望相助, shou wang xiang zhu - "watch, look; mutually, help") have always been the mainstream of our country's ethnic relations, but we must face up to new situations and new problems. Ethnic regions have reached a new level of development, but the problem of unbalanced and inadequate development remains relatively prominent; the trend of large-scale population mobility and extensive intermingled residence among all ethnic groups continues to strengthen, but the factors affecting interactions, exchanges, and integration among all ethnic groups remain complex and diverse; the ideological foundation of the Chinese nation as a community continues to be consolidated, but ideological struggle in the ethnic field remains acute and complex. New social conditions have made interactions among all ethnic groups more extensive, making practical issues such as interest coordination, rule adaptation, and cultural understanding more concrete. Some ways of thinking, working methods, and institutional mechanisms that do not match or do not adapt to the requirements of the new era still need adjustment and improvement; erroneous views and vague understandings concerning ethnicity still exist in society, in academia, and especially on the internet; in practice, one must also guard against simply attributing general social affairs, civil and criminal issues, and ordinary conflicts and disputes to ethnic issues or ethnic contradictions; external forces still use ethnicity, religion, human rights, etc. as pretexts to slander, smear, contain, suppress, infiltrate, and sabotage.

Faced with these new situations and new problems, consolidating a sense of community for the Chinese nation requires correctly grasping the "four pairs of relationships": commonality and differences, a sense of community for the Chinese nation and the consciousness of each ethnic group, Chinese culture and the cultures of each ethnic group, and material and spiritual. The"four pairs of relationships" centrally embody the dialectics of the unity of the "two-point theory" and the "key-point theory". One must adhere to commonality as the dominant factor, enhance commonality, respect and tolerate differences. Respecting and tolerating differences must be conducive to interactions, exchanges, and integration among all ethnic groups. Under conditions of large-scale mobility, extensive intermingled residence, and networking, one must also, through joint living, institutional norms, and theoretical guidance, further transform the continuously growing objective commonality into identification and consensus.

Advancing the Building of the Chinese Nation as a Community with the Consolidation of a Sense of Community for the Chinese Nation as the Main Line

The Party's leadership is the fundamental guarantee for doing ethnic work well and the fundamental guarantee for safeguarding the great unity of the Chinese nation. In the new era, one must strengthen and improve the Party's overall leadership over ethnic work, running the Party's leadership through the entire process of ethnic work. Xi Jinping's thought on Party building clearly proposes that upholding the Party's leadership is the most essential feature of socialism with Chinese characteristics, and adhering to the centralized, unified leadership of the Party Central Committee. To do ethnic work well in the new era, one must always adhere to the centralized, unified leadership of the Party Central Committee, improve the ethnic work pattern in which Party committees exercise unified leadership, governments manage affairs according to law, united front work departments take the lead in coordination, ethnic work departments fulfill their duties, all departments cooperate fully, and the whole society participates.

To strengthen the great unity of the Chinese nation, the long-term and fundamental approach is to enhance cultural identification and build the common spiritual home of the Chinese nation. Chinese civilization has never replaced diverse cultures with a single culture, but rather has brought together diverse cultures into a common culture. Cultural identification connects common history, value pursuits, and cultural life, providing spiritual support for a common identity. To enhance identification with Chinese culture, one must correctly grasp the relationship between Chinese culture and the cultures of each ethnic group, and promote the inheritance, protection, and innovation of the fine traditional cultures of all ethnic groups on the basis of strengthening identification with Chinese culture. One must adhere to a correct view of the history of the Chinese nation, build a scientific and complete theoretical system for the Chinese nation as a community, establish and highlight the Chinese cultural symbols and images of the Chinese nation shared and enjoyed by all ethnic groups, and incorporate education on consolidating a sense of community for the Chinese nation into the national education system, cadre education system, and social education system.

Promoting extensive interactions, exchanges, and integration among all ethnic groups is an important pathway for advancing the building of the Chinese nation as a community. Marxist ethnic theory attaches importance to ethnic interaction, advocating the elimination of ethnic estrangement and the promotion of increasingly close ties among all ethnic groups. From the generation and development of social relations, a sense of community for the Chinese nation requires not only the guidance of correct theory and historical understanding, but also continuous cultivation and consolidation through real joint living and sustained social interaction. Interaction creates conditions for mutual contact and joint living among all ethnic groups, exchange helps enhance mutual understanding and mutual learning, while integration continuously enhances commonality in long-term mutual interaction; the three are interconnected and mutually reinforcing, making social ties among all ethnic groups more extensive and deeper. One must conform to the trend of large-scale population mobility and extensive intermingled residence among all ethnic groups, create social conditions for cohabitation, co-learning, co-building, co-sharing, co-working, and co-enjoyment, promote all-round embeddedness of all ethnic groups in spatial, cultural, economic, social, and psychological dimensions, so that the masses of all ethnic groups can more truly perceive the Chinese nation as a community in their joint living and continuously enhance their identification with the Chinese nation.

One must make promoting all ethnic groups to strive together for building a modern socialist country in all respects an important task of the Party's ethnic work in the new era. Joint development makes the interest ties among all ethnic groups closer, providing more solid material and social conditions for enhancing commonality. Joint development and interest ties provide a realistic foundation for ethnic unity, and this realistic foundation also needs to be consolidated and elevated through spiritual identification. Unifying joint development with the consolidation of a sense of community for the Chinese nation helps transform development achievements into a social foundation for unity and cohesion. One must promote the integration of the development of ethnic regions into the overall national development strategy, improve the balance and accessibility of basic public services, promote all ethnic groups to jointly march toward socialist modernization, and endow all reform and development with the significance of manifesting a sense of community for the Chinese nation, with the significance of safeguarding unity and opposing separatism, and with the significance of improving people's livelihoods and rallying people's hearts.

To advance the building of the Chinese nation as a community, one must adhere to the equality of all ethnic groups, adhere to and improve the system of regional ethnic autonomy, and adhere to law-based governance of ethnic affairs. The equality of all ethnic groups is one of the fundamental principles of founding the state; the fundamental purpose of the system of regional ethnic autonomy is to safeguard national unity and ethnic unity; law-based governance provides a stable and unified legal order for the building of the community. The Law on Promoting Ethnic Unity and Progress has brought requirements such as building a common spiritual home, promoting interactions, exchanges, and integration, and promoting common prosperity and development into the track of the rule of law.

Consolidating a sense of community for the Chinese nation and advancing the building of the Chinese nation as a community is a long-term process, which must follow the laws and require sustained, long-term effort. One must adhere to seeking truth from facts, uphold fundamental principles and break new ground, adhere to being prudent, steady, and gradual, making sustained efforts, and properly resolving the problems of "cannot afford to wait" and "cannot afford to be hasty"; one must both do work that is visible and tangible and do work that is quietly and subtly influencing others (润物细无声, run wu xi wu sheng - "moisten, things, finely, no, sound"), achieving tangible, perceptible, and effective results. One must adhere to the Party's overall leadership, run the enhancement of commonality through the long-term practice of building the Chinese nation as a community and the joint unity and struggle of all ethnic groups, and promote the Chinese nation to become a community of shared destiny with a higher degree of identification and stronger cohesion.

〔The author is Deputy Director of the United Front Teaching and Research Department of the Party School of the CPC Central Committee (National Academy of Governance)〕

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Be adept at using reform-minded approaches and methods to resolve problems encountered in the course of progress

By: 本报评论员兰文飞

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At present, the changes unseen in a century in the world are accelerating their evolution, the impact of uncertainty brought by the external environment is deepening, and our country's economic operation faces some difficulties and challenges. These difficulties and challenges are all problems encountered in the course of progress, worries encountered in the course of growth, and they are all things that can be overcome and resolved. The key lies in whether we can break free from old concepts and find the key to solving problems. General Secretary Xi Jinping has pointed out that every party member, cadre, especially leading cadres at all levels, must act based on all actual facts (一切从实际出发, yi qie cong shi ji chu fa - "all, from, actual, depart"), free the mind from old ideas (解放思想, jie fang si xiang - "release, bound, thought"), show enterprising spirit (开拓进取, kai tuo jin qu - "open, expand, advance, pursue"), and be adept at using reform-minded approaches and methods to resolve various problems encountered in the course of progress. This important exposition provides party members and cadres with a fundamental methodological guide for responding to risks and challenges and cracking development difficulties.

Development poses the questions, and reform writes the answers. Reform has only a present continuous tense, with no perfect tense. Using reform-minded approaches and methods to resolve problems encountered in the course of progress is a basic experience in our country's development process. Materialist dialectics tells us that the motion and change of things are absolute, while stillness is relative. Faced with various problems encountered in the course of progress, only by being adept at using reform-minded approaches and methods can we find the path to resolving problems. Practice has already proven that it is precisely by relying on more than 40 years of continuously deepening reform and opening up that our country has undergone unprecedented and tremendous changes (翻天覆地, fan tian fu di - "overturn, heaven, overturn, earth"). Reform is generated under the pressure of problems, and is deepened in the continuous process of resolving problems. Only by actively adapting to the new changes in the social situation and the new expectations of the people, advancing all work with the spirit of reform, encouraging exploration and innovation, daring to break fixed patterns of thinking, casting off path dependence, persisting in using reform-minded approaches and methods to examine, study, and crack the problems encountered in the course of progress, can we find the means and methods to resolve problems, enabling all work to better embody the characteristics of the times, grasp the laws of development, and be full of creativity, so that the road of development will grow ever broader.

Contradiction is the basic mode of existence of objective things, the fundamental driving force of the development of things, while problems are the forms of manifestation of the contradictions of things, the concrete embodiment of the universality and objectivity of contradictions. One must be adept at discovering problems, facing problems squarely, and be adept at treating the understanding and resolution of various problems as the breakthrough point for opening up the work situation. The Party leading the people in carrying out revolution, construction, and reform has always been for the purpose of resolving problems in reality. The correct attitude toward various problems encountered in the course of progress should be to face the problems directly and, in the process of resolving problems, promote the continuous advancement of the cause. Our country is currently at a critical stage of leaping from an upper-middle-income country to a high-income country and then advancing toward a moderately developed country, and the conditions for development and the model of growth are both undergoing profound changes. Faced with the problem of unbalanced and inadequate development, it is necessary to act according to the new requirements of the new stage of development, fully, accurately, and comprehensively implement the new development philosophy, and achieve high-quality development. Faced with ecological and environmental problems, we must comprehensively advance the modernization of harmony between humanity and nature through the construction of a Beautiful China, and incorporate carbon peak and carbon neutrality into the overall layout of ecological civilization construction. These are all problem-oriented approaches, treating reform as the fundamental cure, so that problems can be readily resolved.

One must possess an overall perspective, having a clear idea of the situation (心中有数, xin zhong you shu - "heart, middle, have, number") regarding various problems, giving priority to resolving the principal contradiction and the principal aspect of the contradiction, thereby driving the resolution of other contradictions. Mao Zedong pointed out: "The study of the various unbalanced conditions of contradictions, the study of the principal contradiction and non-principal contradictions, the principal aspect of the contradiction and the non-principal aspect of the contradiction, constitutes one of the important methods for a revolutionary party to correctly determine its political and military strategic and tactical policies, and is something that all Communists should pay attention to." In each historical period, our Party has been able to accurately understand and analyze the principal social contradiction, and consciously deploy the Party's and the state's various work around the principal contradiction, thereby promoting the resolution of overall problems. To further comprehensively deepen reform, it is necessary to focus on key areas such as building a high-standard socialist market economy system, ensuring and improving people's livelihoods, preventing and defusing major risks, giving priority to resolving the most prominent problems restricting development and the problems most strongly reflected by the masses, and through reform breakthroughs in important areas and key links, drive overall advancement, so as to continuously deepen reform.

One must improve one's ability to handle complex problems, highlighting the systemic nature, holistic nature, and coordinated nature of reform. Faced with problems encountered in the course of progress, especially the intricately intertwined and complicated (盘根错节, pan gen cuo jie - "entwine, root, complex, knot") various interest relationships, party members and cadres must overcome the"capability panic," persist in observing things developmentally rather than statically, comprehensively rather than one-sidedly, systematically rather than fragmentarily, and in terms of universal connections rather than in isolation, be adept at handling the relationships between the partial and the whole, the current and the long-term, the key and the non-key, accurately grasp objective reality, truly master the laws, properly handle various interest relationships, and ensure that the direction of reform is correct and the path is clear. Regarding new problems in new fields and new practices, we should encourage grassroots units to boldly explore and pilot first, accumulate experience through trials, and then gradually promote. We must fully respect the pioneering spirit of grassroots units and the masses, fully release the initiative, enthusiasm, and creativity of the masses, continuously create and accumulate fresh experience that can be replicated and promoted. Be adept at dissecting sparrows, analyzing the principles behind successful experience and their development trends, and distill effective methods and paths

One who has traveled ninety miles of a hundred-mile journey is only halfway there (行百里者半九十, xing bai li zhe ban jiu shi - "walk, hundred, li, person, half, ninety"). The closer we approach the realization of the great goal, the more complex the problems on the road of progress become, and the more it is necessary for party members and cadres to maintain strategic sobriety, be adept at using reform-minded approaches and methods to discover problems, analyze problems, and resolve problems, lead reform breakthroughs with the emancipation of thought, and in the process of tackling difficulties, continuously release the dividends of reform and continuously strengthen the driving force of development.

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Important Remarks

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After long-term exploration and practice, the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics has demonstrated enormous advantages, the modernization level of China's system and capacity for national governance has continuously improved, and the realization of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation has become an unstoppable force or trend (势不可挡, shi bu ke dang - "momentum, not, can, block"). As long as we strengthen our confidence, anchor our goals, and move forward steadily step by step, success will surely belong to the great Communist Party of China, the great Chinese people, and the great People's Republic of China!

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This Issue's Guide

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Sailing Together Toward a More Beautiful Tomorrow

By: 唐健

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In November 2020, at the 12th BRICS Summit, General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out, "We are all in the same boat. When the wind is high and the waves are rough, we must all the more keep to the right course, master the proper rhythm, unite in cooperation, braving the wind and waves to forge ahead (乘风破浪, cheng feng po lang - "ride the wind, break the waves"), making steady progress to achieve long-term goals (行稳致远, xing wen zhi yuan - "walk steadily, reach far"), and sail toward a more beautiful tomorrow."

A boat is a vessel, a means of water transport. When General Secretary Xi Jinping spoke of the BRICS countries, he used the "boat" as a metaphor, drawing the BRICS countries from scattered geographic spaces into a concrete space of practice, vividly conveying both that the BRICS countries face an external environment of "high winds and rough waves," and calling on the BRICS countries, through sincere cooperation and braving the wind and waves, to sail together toward a more beautiful tomorrow.

"One who crosses rivers relies on the boat; one who reaches far relies on the steed." To overcome the obstacles of water, whether for transport, travel, or fishing and other activities, people must use boats. The Han Feizi says, "A thousand jun sinks not when it has a boat; a fraction of an ounce sinks when it lacks one — not because the thousand jun is light and the fraction is heavy, but because of having leverage versus lacking it." With a boat, even a weight of a thousand jun can float; without a boat, even a very light object will sink. The "boat" is the "leverage" that people actively create in order to achieve their goals. For the BRICS countries, today's world is interwoven with change and disorder, and technological revolution is changing with each passing day (日新月异, ri xin yue yi - "day new, month change"); they must create favorable "leverage" so that in the end they can accomplish things. Therefore, the BRICS countries must strengthen cooperation and ride the same boat, so that they can fear no wind or rain. By extension, not only the BRICS countries — against the backdrop of changes unseen in a century, all countries are aboard the same boat. In November 2023, when General Secretary Xi Jinping met with Australian Prime Minister Albanese, he stated, "Amid the towering waves of global crises, countries are not each riding in more than 190 small boats, but are riding in one great ship sharing a common destiny." The BRICS countries must strengthen cooperation in fields such as artificial intelligence, trade and investment, industrial development, and scientific and technological talent cultivation, forming a model force that advances the Global South, and indeed the cooperation of all countries, joining hands to address the common challenges facing humanity.

"Boat means following — following the water's course." A boat's voyage must be guided by circumstances; only by borrowing the water's momentum and the wind's force can it achieve more with less effort (事半功倍, shi ban gong bei - "work half, gain double") and avoid needless sacrifice and consumption. This means that when the great ship of BRICS sails, it must keep to the right course, follow the great way, act in accord with the times, and not move against the tide of history. Today's "BRICS family" accounts for nearly half of the world's population, roughly 30 percent of global economic output, and one-fifth of world trade, having already become a playing a decisive or pivotal role (举足轻重, ju zu qing zhong - "lift foot, be heavy") force on the international political stage. The BRICS countries must use their ever-growing strength to advance economic globalization and world multipolarity, letting their development achievements benefit the world's people more and better. When a ship sails, it inevitably encounters "adverse currents" and"backwash waves"; now some Western countries, clinging to the hegemonic, domineering, bullying logic that "might makes right," pursue unilateralism and undermine international rules. Facing these challenges, in September 2026, at the 18th BRICS Summit, General Secretary Xi Jinping called on, "The BRICS countries must grasp the historical initiative, unite the broad family of Global South countries, and play an active, stable, and good-ward role in international affairs," cooperating to defend international fairness and justice, uphold the authoritative role of the United Nations, support multilateral institutions in reform and efficiency gains, and provide guarantees for all countries' equal participation in international affairs.

"Sailing on the open sea, even the largest ship will have its moments of pitching." The sea is full of the unknown; when a ship sails, it will inevitably encounter fierce winds and sudden storms, so it must have an advanced navigation system to avoid going off course, and every crew member must remain on high alert at all times, precisely identifying and avoiding dangerous shoals and hidden reefs, so that it can making steady progress to achieve long-term goals. In today's world, traditional threats and non-traditional threats are emerging in an endless stream (层出不穷, ceng chu bu qiong - "layer out, not exhausted"), also creating obstacles for international cooperation; statesmen need superb political wisdom and diplomatic artistry to guide the "ship of cooperation" through the unknown and toward the future. Izat Saad, director of the Egyptian Council for Foreign Affairs, said that"President Xi Jinping has put forward a series of initiatives and propositions regarding BRICS development, pointing the way for practical cooperation among BRICS countries in finance, energy, technology, and other fields"; as long as these directions are followed, this great ship of BRICS can fear no difficulties or dangers, braving the waves to forge ahead (劈波斩浪, pi bo zhan lang - "split waves, chop surges"). What deserves vigilance is that some countries, unwilling to see BRICS grow, are agitating to create trouble for BRICS cooperation and divide BRICS; "hardship tests a person's character (疾风知劲草, ji feng zhi jin cao - "strong wind, know tough grass"), adversity reveals true character (烈火见真金, lie huo jian zhen jin - "fierce fire, see true gold")" — the BRICS countries must stand together in mutual assistance and strengthen strategic mutual trust, so that they can withstand the tests of wind and waves and open the third "Golden Decade" of BRICS cooperation.

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Ideas and culture are the soul of a country and a nation

By: 范玉刚

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"A Country, a Nation Cannot Be Without a Soul" is an important speech delivered by General Secretary Xi Jinping on March 4, 2019, when he participated in the joint group meeting of the literary and art circles and the social sciences circles at the Second Session of the 13th CPPCC National Committee, and is included in Volume II of Selected Cultural Works of Xi Jinping. This important document, set against the era context of coordinating the overall strategy of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation and the changes unseen in a century in the world, puts forward doing cultural, literary, and artistic work and philosophy and social science work well with the "Four Upholds," emphasizes that cultural, literary, and artistic work and philosophy and social science work must eliminate falsehoods and return to the essence (正本清源, zheng ben qing yuan - "correct the root, clear the source"), uphold fundamental principles and break new ground, and broadly pool consensus for realizing the Two Centenary Goals and the Chinese Dream of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. It is an important document for us to study and implement Xi Jinping Thought on Culture.

Cultural, literary, and artistic work and philosophy and social science work occupy a very important position

When culture prospers, the nation prospers; when culture is strong, the nation is strong. Without a high degree of cultural confidence, without the flourishing and prosperity of culture, there can be no great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. In this important document, General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized that, "A country, a nation cannot be without a soul. As a spiritual undertaking, culture, literature, art, philosophy, and social sciences are of course a creation of the soul; first, they cannot be without it; second, they cannot be in chaos." The flourishing development of culture will inevitably condense into a mainstream spiritual expression with powerful value appeal, and this is the cultural spirit of an era. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out:"Cultural, literary, and artistic work and philosophy and social science work occupy a very important position in the overall work of the Party and the state, and play a very important role in upholding and developing socialism with Chinese characteristics in the new era." This is the important positioning of cultural, literary, and artistic work and philosophy and social science work in the overall work of the Party and the state under the conditions of the new era, and it needs to be elevated to the height of a national strategy for understanding.

The core of culture is values, which are an important foundation for a nation to achieve long-term success through steady progress (行稳致远, xing wen zhi yuan - "walk steadily, reach far"). General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out:"Value concepts play a central-axis role in the culture of a certain society, and the influence of culture is first of all the influence of value concepts. The various cultural struggles in the world are in essence struggles over value concepts, and also struggles over people's hearts and struggles over ideology. It is just as the saying goes,'The strength of the moment lies in force; the victory or defeat of the ages lies in principle.'" Historical experience has repeatedly shown that core values are the deepest-level elements that determine the nature and direction of culture. The cultural soft power of a country depends on the vitality, cohesion, and appeal of its core values, which fundamentally determine how far a country and a nation can go. This is the deep meaning contained in the statement that a country, a nation cannot be without a soul, and the soul cannot be in chaos. Values are of course abstract, but they are a force that truly acts upon people's hearts; they are contained in the value inquiries of the creative and productive practices of cultural, literary, and artistic work and in philosophy and social science research, and need to be continuously cultivated and created. This extreme importance is precisely the reason why our Party attaches great importance to cultural, literary, and artistic work and philosophy and social science work, and will inevitably elevate them to an especially prominent position in the overall work of the Party and the state.

Cultivating cultural spirit with the "Four Upholds"

Cultural confidence is a more fundamental, broader, and deeper confidence, and a more basic, deeper, and more enduring force. The flourishing of culture, literature, and art and the development of philosophy and social sciences not only play a value-guiding role in the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation and the peaceful development of the country, but also serve as a powerful spiritual driving force for Chinese modernization to achieve long-term success through steady progress. In this important document, General Secretary Xi Jinping put forward the "Four Upholds" from the dimensions of the era, the people, reality, and society, emphasizing the need to unite people's will and strengthen their spirit (凝心铸魂, ning xin zhu hun - "condense hearts, cast soul") for society amid the changes of the era, providing fundamental guidelines and pointing out the correct direction for cultural, literary, and artistic work and philosophy and social science work.

First, uphold keeping pace with the times, to respond to the questions of the era. The new era is the stage for the flourishing of culture, literature, art, and the development of philosophy and social sciences. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out,"The new era calls for outstanding writers, artists, and theorists, and literary and artistic creation and academic innovation possess incomparably broad space." To respond to the call of the era, literary and artistic creation and philosophy and social science research must listen to the voice of the era, discover themes of creation from the great creations of contemporary China, capture inspiration for innovation, reflect the great historical changes of the era, depict the spiritual map of the era, paint portraits of the era, write biographies of the era, and illuminate the virtues of the era.

Second, uphold a people-centered approach, to respond to the needs of the people. Whether in literary and artistic creation or in philosophy and social science research, one must first clarify the question of for whom to create and for whom to establish one's words, and this is a fundamental question. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out:"The people are the creators of history. All achievements are attributed to the people, and all glory belongs to the people." Serving the people wholeheartedly is the purpose of the Communist Party of China, and upholding the supremacy of the people is the basic concept of the Communist Party of China's governance. Rooted in reality and taking root among the people are the source of literary and artistic creation and the foundation of scientific research, and the people must be placed in the highest position in one's heart.

Third, uphold offering fine works to the people, to respond to the needs of reality. The demand for fine works is necessitated by the development of the times; whether it is satisfying the people's diverse spiritual needs or the cultural competition on the world stage, it is all manifested in the competition over fine works. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out:"If one does not put one's mind and energy into creating fine works, but only thinks about taking shortcuts and seeking quick results, one cannot become a master, cannot become a great master." Practice has shown that all valuable and meaningful literary and artistic creation and academic research, only when they take reality as their starting point, truly solve real problems, and are able to answer real questions, can they, through fine works, showcase the wonderful lives of the Chinese people, explain well the Chinese spirit, Chinese values, and Chinese strength.

Fourth, uphold using bright virtue to lead social trends, to respond to social concerns. Understanding great virtue and establishing great virtue are the highest social realms, and literary and artistic creation and academic research must lead social trends through setting an example, possessing both high moral character and artistic talent (德艺双馨, de yi shuang xin - "virtue, art, both fragrant") to set a benchmark for society. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out:"Cultural, literary, and artistic workers and philosophy and social science workers all shoulder the important responsibility of enlightening thought, cultivating sentiment, and moistening the soul, and undertake the mission of educating people with culture, nurturing people with culture, and cultivating people with culture." He emphasized that literary and artistic creation and academic research must establish lofty ideals and pursuits and profound feelings for family and country, closely combine personal artistic pursuits and academic ideals with the future of the country, the destiny of the nation, and the well-being of the people, and win the people's acclaim with fine works.

Pooling consensus amid grasping the changes of the era

The times have undergone earth-shattering changes (天翻地覆, tian fan di fu - "sky overturn, earth turn"), and the Chinese nation has ushered in the great leap from standing up, to growing rich, to becoming strong, which all the more requires the support of cultural spirit. General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized,"Civilization, especially thought and culture, is the soul of a country and a nation. No matter which country or which nation, if it does not cherish its own thought and culture, if it loses thoughtand culture, this soul, then this country and this nation cannot stand up." The history of human civilization shows that a high-spirited, independent, and self-reliant cultural spirit is the hallmark of a great nation in its historical ascent. This especially highlights the importance of this important document's discussion of the soul of a country and a nation, whose focus precisely falls on cultivating cultural spirit, and which has extremely important practical guiding significance for guiding cultural development, especially the construction of the public cultural service system, literary and artistic creation, the development of the cultural industry, and the construction of China's independent knowledge system.

Amid social transformation and ideological confrontation, new value relationships and value demands are taking shape at an accelerated pace, and the autonomy, selectivity, and differentiation of people's ideological concepts and value orientations are continuously increasing. Certain chaotic phenomena in creation and erroneous academic viewpoints fundamentally deviate from the path confidence, theoretical confidence, institutional confidence, and cultural confidence of socialism with Chinese characteristics, challenging socialism from the perspective of values. General Secretary Xi Jinping has repeatedly emphasized that socialism with Chinese characteristics is socialism, not some other kind of socialism; the basic principles of scientific socialism cannot be discarded, and if they are discarded, it is no longer socialism. Contemporary China is socialist China, which necessarily requires that literary and artistic creation and philosophy and social science research be guided by Marxism, uphold the people-centered value orientation, actively cultivate and practice socialist core values, and, through the creation of the soul, unite people's willand strengthen their spirit for society.

Our country is now in a new historical stage where the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation is unstoppable, which all the more requires literary and artistic creation and academic research to cast a soul for society, continuously strengthen the awareness of "creation of the soul," and thereby pool the majestic practical force of hundreds of millions of people. Literary and artistic creation and production and academic research must not only speak the Chinese language, but also, more importantly, possess the Chinese soul; they must, on the world stage, disseminate Chinese civilization and present China's image through fine works, displaying the Chinese spirit, Chinese values, and Chinese strength from multiple dimensions. Works that unite people's willand strengthen their spirit are not only fine works responding to the questions of the era, but also powerful works courageous enough to answer real questions, thereby manifesting the faith, feelings, and responsibility of cultural, literary, and artistic workers and philosophy and social science workers. Cultural, literary, and artistic workers and philosophy and social science workers must use socialist core values to condense a soul for literary and artistic creation and academic research, thereby guiding the diverse values in reality, resisting cultural nihilism, historical nihilism, and vulgarity, banality, and kitsch, and use fine works to provide powerful spiritual encouragement for the Party and the people to continue advancing.