The Dispute between Hu Shi and the Kuomintang over the “New Culture Movement”

The dispute between Hu Shi and the Kuomintang over the “New Culture Movement” in 1929 was the epilogue of the debate on human rights.Hu Shi spoke as a participant of the New Culture Movement for the first time,attacking the Kuomintang for always opposing to it and thus being “reactionary”.The Kuomintang,however,was the former instigator of the New Culture Movement,while Hu Shi had always kept a distance from it.Chen Dezheng and others from the Party Department of the Kuomintang in Shanghai besieged Hu Shi for this and defended the autocracy of the Kuomintang.Besides,other factions of the Kuomintang,the left-wing figures and the Communist Party of China also perceived Hu Shi as backward and even “reactionary”.In particular,Hu Shi insisted on unconditionally embracing the European and American civilization,opposed to the remarks and actions against the imperialist cultural aggression,negated the national culture and nationalism,which aroused disputes among the groups that were gradually turning towards nationalization.As a result,the label of “reactionary” boomeranged against Hu Shi.