Carsun Chang (; 1887–1969), also known as Chang Chun-mai () or Carson Chang, was a prominent Chinese philosopher, public intellectual and a

social democratic Social democracy is a Social philosophy, social, Economic ideology, economic, and political philosophy within socialism that supports Democracy, political and economic democracy and a gradualist, reformist, and democratic approach toward achi ...

politician. He was recognized as "Father of Constitution in

Republic of China Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...

". He played an important role in the drafting of the

Constitution of the Republic of China The Constitution of the Republic of China is the fifth and current constitution of the Republic of China (ROC), ratified by the Kuomintang during the Constituent National Assembly session on 25 December 1946, in Nanking, and adopted on 25 De ...

in 1946. Chang was influenced by ideas related to

Jeffersonian democracy Jeffersonian democracy, named after its advocate Thomas Jefferson, was one of two dominant political outlooks and movements in the United States from the 1790s to the 1820s. The Jeffersonians were deeply committed to American republicanism, wh ...

Biography

A pioneering theorist of human rights in the Chinese context, Chang established his own small "Third Force" democratic party during the Nationalist era. Chang supported German-style

social democracy Social democracy is a Social philosophy, social, Economic ideology, economic, and political philosophy within socialism that supports Democracy, political and economic democracy and a gradualist, reformist, and democratic approach toward achi ...

while opposing

capitalism Capitalism is an economic system based on the private ownership of the means of production and their use for the purpose of obtaining profit. This socioeconomic system has developed historically through several stages and is defined by ...

communism Communism () is a political sociology, sociopolitical, political philosophy, philosophical, and economic ideology, economic ideology within the history of socialism, socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a ...

, and

guild socialism Guild socialism is an ideology and a political movement advocating workers' control of industry through the medium of trade-related guilds "in an implied contractual relationship with the public". It originated in the United Kingdom and was at ...

. He supported

socialization In sociology, socialization (also socialisation – see American and British English spelling differences#-ise, -ize (-isation, -ization), spelling differences) is the process of Internalisation (sociology), internalizing the Norm (social), norm ...

of major industries such as railroads and mines to be run by a combination of government officials, technicians, and consumers., and the development of a

mixed economy A mixed economy is an economic system that includes both elements associated with capitalism, such as private businesses, and with socialism, such as nationalized government services. More specifically, a mixed economy may be variously de ...

in China, like that advocated by the

Social Democratic Party of Germany The Social Democratic Party of Germany ( , SPD ) is a social democratic political party in Germany. It is one of the major parties of contemporary Germany. Saskia Esken has been the party's leader since the 2019 leadership election together w ...

under

Philipp Scheidemann Philipp Heinrich Scheidemann (26 July 1865 – 29 November 1939) was a German politician of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD). In the first quarter of the 20th century he played a leading role in both his party and in the young Weimar ...

. Equipped with the traditional Confucian degree of ''xiucai'' or "accomplished scholar", Chang went on to study at

Waseda University Waseda University (Japanese: ), abbreviated as or , is a private university, private research university in Shinjuku, Tokyo. Founded in 1882 as the Tōkyō Professional School by Ōkuma Shigenobu, the fifth Prime Minister of Japan, prime ministe ...

in Japan where he came under the influence of

Liang Qichao Liang Qichao (Chinese: 梁啓超; Wade–Giles: ''Liang2 Chʻi3-chʻao1''; Yale romanization of Cantonese, Yale: ''Lèuhng Kái-chīu''; ) (February 23, 1873 – January 19, 1929) was a Chinese politician, social and political activist, jour ...

's theory of constitutional monarchy. In 1918 he accompanied Liang's tour of post-war Europe, later going to Germany to study philosophy for a short time at Berlin University. While in Germany he came under the influence of the teachings of Rudolf Eucken (1846–1926) and

Henri Bergson Henri-Louis Bergson (; ; 18 October 1859 – 4 January 1941) was a French philosopher who was influential in the traditions of analytic philosophy and continental philosophy, especially during the first half of the 20th century until the S ...

(1859–1941). With

Hans Driesch Hans Adolf Eduard Driesch (28 October 1867 – 17 April 1941) was a German biologist and philosopher from Bad Kreuznach. He is most noted for his early experimental work in embryology and for his neo-vitalist philosophy of entelechy. He has also ...

, who was formerly Eucken's student, Chang travelled throughout China in the early 1920s, serving as Driesch's Chinese translator as he lectured on Eucken's philosophical vision. In 1922, Chang led a committee which drafted an outline for a constitution with a federal system of government. In 1923 Chang gave a lecture at

Tsinghua University Tsinghua University (THU) is a public university in Haidian, Beijing, China. It is affiliated with and funded by the Ministry of Education of China. The university is part of Project 211, Project 985, and the Double First-Class Constructio ...

, the title was "outlook on life (人生觀)". Soon after, his speech was published on Tsinghua weekly (淸華週刊), this led to polemics over science and metaphysics (also known as the "worldview controversy"). He wrote extensively on what now forms part of modern neo-Confucianism. With Zhang Dongsun, he organized a National Socialist Party (not connected with the Nazis in Germany). In 1933 he and

Huang Yanpei Huang Yanpei (; 1 October 1878 – 21 December 1965) was a Chinese educator, writer, and politician. He was a founding pioneer of the China Democratic League and the China National Democratic Construction Association, which are among the eigh ...

organized the

China Democratic League The China Democratic League (CDL) is one of the eight minor democratic parties in the People's Republic of China under the direction of the Chinese Communist Party. The CDL was originally founded in 1941 as a pro-democracy umbrella coalition g ...

, a Third Force party with strong commitments to liberal doctrines of

separation of powers The separation of powers principle functionally differentiates several types of state (polity), state power (usually Legislature#Legislation, law-making, adjudication, and Executive (government)#Function, execution) and requires these operat ...

freedom of expression Freedom of speech is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or a community to articulate their opinions and ideas without fear of retaliation, censorship, or legal sanction. The rights, right to freedom of expression has been r ...

and

human rights Human rights are universally recognized Morality, moral principles or Social norm, norms that establish standards of human behavior and are often protected by both Municipal law, national and international laws. These rights are considered ...

. Chang joined the pacifist Low-Key Club during the early

Second Sino-Japanese War The Second Sino-Japanese War was fought between the Republic of China (1912–1949), Republic of China and the Empire of Japan between 1937 and 1945, following a period of war localized to Manchuria that started in 1931. It is considered part ...

, which consisted of Nanjing Nationalist elites and emphasized China's inability to counter Japan's military power, while advocating for Sino-Japanese peace and a ceasefire. The political scientist Qian Duansheng criticized Chang as "neither an organizer himself nor a man able to pick capable men to organize for him." John F. Melby, an American diplomat who knew Chang during the war, felt that Chang was as "unrealistic" as his brother, Chang Kia-ngau, was hard headed. As a scholar, Melby conceded, Chang was "highly intelligent and well educated," but as a politician he was "utopian" and "ineffectual." After the war against Japan, Chang became the chairman of the China Democratic Socialist Party. Opposed to the Chinese communists, but also dissatisfied with Chiang Kai-shek's noncompliance with the constitution, Carsun Chang went to the United States after 1949. The Democratic Socialist Party moved to Taiwan afterwards and continued resisting the implementation of a one-party dictatorship and oppression by the

Kuomintang The Kuomintang (KMT) is a major political party in the Republic of China (Taiwan). It was the one party state, sole ruling party of the country Republic of China (1912-1949), during its rule from 1927 to 1949 in Mainland China until Retreat ...

though its very survival in Taiwan was due to its tacit cooperation with the Kuomintang. Carsun Chang reappeared in 1962 calling for the unity of the party, but returned to the United States before his death in 1969.

Family

Carsun Chang was the older brother of the prominent banker and politician Chang Kia-ngau (Zhang Jia'ao). His sister, Zhang Youyi, was an educator, banker, and the first wife of poet Xu Zhimo.

References

Works

*Chang, Carsun. ''The Third Force in China.'' New York: Bookman Associates, 1952. *Chang, Carsun. ''The Development of Neo-Confucian Thought.'' 2 vols. New York: Bookman Associates, 1957-1962.
Vol. 2
*Chang, Carsun
''Wang Yang-ming: Idealist philosopher of sixteenth-century China''
Jamaica, NY: St. John's University Press, 1962. *Chang, Carsun, and Rudolf Eucken. ''Das Lebensproblem in China und in Europa.'' Leipzig: Quelle & Meyer, 1922. *Chang, Carsun, and Kalidas Nag. ''China and Gandhian India.'' Calcutta: The Book Company, 1956. *Chang, Carsun et al. (1958). ''A Manifesto on the Reappraisal of Chinese Culture; Our Joint Understanding of the Sinological Study Relating to World Cultural Outlook.'' *Chang, Carsun. ''Guoxian yi'' (1921). In ''Xian Zheng zhi dao'' (Beijing: Qinghua daxue chubanshe, 2006a). *Chang, Carsun. ''Minzu fuxing de xueshu jichu'' (1935). Beijing: Zhongguo renmin daxue chubanshe, 2006b. *Chang, Carsun. ''Mingri zhi Zhongguo wenhua'' (1936). Beijing: Zhongguo renmin daxue chubanshe, 2006c. *Chang, Carsun. ''Li guo zhi dao'' (1938). In ''Xian Zheng zhi dao'' (Beijing: Qinghua daxue chubanshe, 2006d). *Chang, Carsun. ''Yili xue shi jiang gangyao'' (1955). Beijing: Zhongguo renmin daxue chubanshe, 2006. *Chang, Carsun. ''Bijiao Zhong Ri Yangming xue.'' Taipei: Taiwan shangwu yinshu guan, 1955. *Chang, Carsun. ''Bianzheng weiwu zhuyi bolun.'' Hong Kong: Youlian chubanshe, 1958. *Chang, Carsun. ''Zhongguo zhuanzhi junzhu zhengzhi pingyi.'' Taipei: Hongwen guan chubanshe, 1986. *Chang, Carsun. ''Rujia zhexue zhi fuxing.'' Beijing: Zhongguo renmin daxue chubanshe, 2006. *Chang, Carsun, and Wenxi Cheng. ''Zhong Xi Yin zhexue wenji.'' 2 vols. Taipei: Taiwan xuesheng shuju, 1970. *Chang, Carsun, and Huayuan Xue. ''Yijiusijiu nian yihou Zhang Junmai yanlun ji.'' Taipei : Daoxiang chubanshe, 1989.

Secondary sources

* * * * *Xinzhong Yao, ed. (2003). ''RoutledgeCurzon Encyclopedia of Confucianism''. London and New York: RoutledgeCurzon, Vol. 2, pp. 799–800.

External links