Ivo Spira | University of Oslo (original) (raw)

Papers by Ivo Spira

Journal of Political Ideologies, 2018

The many words in '-ism' in Western languages, from 'anarchism' to 'Zenonism,' are the linguistic... more The many words in '-ism' in Western languages, from 'anarchism' to 'Zenonism,' are the linguistic manifestation of a significant European conceptual innovation in scholarly and ideological discourse. Briefly put, there is an intense reductionism in these concepts that underlies their effective rhetorical deployment in various forms of ideological and expository discourse. While isms originated in Europe, they were eventually appropriated by speakers of other languages and became a significant factor and indicator of change in modern society on a global scale. Concepts such as 'feminism,' 'socialism' and 'nationalism' were instrumental in transforming history in the Far East, and so this article explores the appropriation of isms as zhǔyì 主義 in Chinese. The article focuses on how 'ismatic reasoning' came to dominate Chinese intellectual and political discourse in the 20th century, zooming in on the case of political ideals for China in the modern world. The historical contingency and change of particular isms, as well as local conceptual innovations, are highlighted in the article. From 'Unitarianism' to 'terrorism', isms form an important part of modern man's conceptual toolkit. Although isms originated in Europe, the European case is not necessarily the clearest instance of this conceptual phenomenon, nor the one with the greatest historical impact. In the Chinese case, the phenomenon is neatly identifiable in linguistic terms, and it had such an impact on Modern Chinese history that the early twentieth century may justifiably be called the 'Age of Isms'. 1 While it is hardly surprising from a present-day perspective that 'communism' became a key concept in China, it is perhaps less obvious why the concept of 'ism' (zhǔyì 主義) itself has become one. But even more striking is the rise of endemic 'ismism', a trend by virtue of which the mere possession of an ism was elevated to the status of a magic formula, since having an ism lent direction, orientation and commitment to one's enterprise. This is probably where the real significance of the Chinese case lies: the way in which the nation's future as well as individual destinies were subordinated to the 'ism model' on a large scale. People let isms become the master concepts of their individual lives and social community, and so isms became social key concepts (Grundbegriffe) in the Koselleckian sense. 2 While this article is mainly an exposition of how Western isms were adopted and adapted in China, I also offer some thoughts on why a profoundly tradition-bound society all of a sudden adopted the logic of Western isms in a big way.

Journal of Political Ideologies, 2018

The many words in '-ism' in Western languages, from 'anarchism' to 'Zenonism,' are the linguistic... more The many words in '-ism' in Western languages, from 'anarchism' to 'Zenonism,' are the linguistic manifestation of a significant European conceptual innovation in scholarly and ideological discourse. Briefly put, there is an intense reductionism in these concepts that underlies their effective rhetorical deployment in various forms of ideological and expository discourse. While isms originated in Europe, they were eventually appropriated by speakers of other languages and became a significant factor and indicator of change in modern society on a global scale. Concepts such as 'feminism,' 'socialism' and 'nationalism' were instrumental in transforming history in the Far East, and so this article explores the appropriation of isms as zhǔyì 主義 in Chinese. The article focuses on how 'ismatic reasoning' came to dominate Chinese intellectual and political discourse in the 20th century, zooming in on the case of political ideals for China in the modern world. The historical contingency and change of particular isms, as well as local conceptual innovations, are highlighted in the article. From 'Unitarianism' to 'terrorism', isms form an important part of modern man's conceptual toolkit. Although isms originated in Europe, the European case is not necessarily the clearest instance of this conceptual phenomenon, nor the one with the greatest historical impact. In the Chinese case, the phenomenon is neatly identifiable in linguistic terms, and it had such an impact on Modern Chinese history that the early twentieth century may justifiably be called the 'Age of Isms'. 1 While it is hardly surprising from a present-day perspective that 'communism' became a key concept in China, it is perhaps less obvious why the concept of 'ism' (zhǔyì 主義) itself has become one. But even more striking is the rise of endemic 'ismism', a trend by virtue of which the mere possession of an ism was elevated to the status of a magic formula, since having an ism lent direction, orientation and commitment to one's enterprise. This is probably where the real significance of the Chinese case lies: the way in which the nation's future as well as individual destinies were subordinated to the 'ism model' on a large scale. People let isms become the master concepts of their individual lives and social community, and so isms became social key concepts (Grundbegriffe) in the Koselleckian sense. 2 While this article is mainly an exposition of how Western isms were adopted and adapted in China, I also offer some thoughts on why a profoundly tradition-bound society all of a sudden adopted the logic of Western isms in a big way.