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(2) The Dialectical View of Development

This holds that in order to understand the development of a thing, we should study it internally and in its relationship with other things; in other words, the development of things should be seen as their internal, necessary and independent selfmovement; that is, the automaticity of things.[4-389] The fundamental cause of the development of a thing is not external but internal; it lies in the contradictoriness within the thing. There is internal contradiction in every single thing, hence its motion and development.

Thus, the dialectical view of development combats the theory of external causes, or of an external motive force,[4-390] advanced by metaphysics and vulgar evolutionism. It is evident that purely external causes can only give rise to mechanical motion, that is, to changes in scale or quantity, but cannot explain why things differ qualitatively in thousands of ways.[4-391] As a matter of fact, even mechanical motion under external force occurs through the internal contradictoriness of things. Simple growth in plants and animals is not only quantitative increase, it is at the same time the emergence of qualitative change; simple growth is likewise[4-392] the result of development arising from contradictions. Similarly, social development is due chiefly not to external but to internal causes. Countries with almost the same geographical and climatic conditions display great diversity and unevenness in their development. Moreover, great social changes may take place in one and the same country although its geography and climate remain unchanged, and this condition exists in many countries around the globe. Old Russian imperialism[4-393] changed into the socialist Soviet Union, and a purely feudal Japan, which had locked its doors against the world, changed into imperialist Japan, although no change occurred in the geography and climate of either country. Change was extremely limited in China with its several thousand year old feudal system, but recently there have been great changes, and is just now changing into a new China, liberated and free. Is it conceivable there are any differences between the geography and climate of China today and of several decades ago? It is quite evident, [p. 243] it is not due to external reasons but to internal reasons.[4-394] Changes[4-395]in nature are due chiefly to the development of the contradictions within things in nature. Changes in society are due[4-396] to the development of the internal contradictions in society, the contradiction between the productive forces and the relations of production, and the contradiction between classes,[4-397] and it is these that push society forward.[4-398] Does dialectics[4-399]exclude external causes? Not at all. The external causes are the condition of change and internal causes are the basis of change, the external causes become operative through internal causes. In a suitable temperature an egg changes into a chicken, but no temperature can change a stone into a chicken, because the basis of the internal causes is different. The pressure of imperialism accelerated change in Chinese society, and these changes were effected through the inner regularities (guilüxing) of China itself. In battle, one army is victorious and the other is defeated; both the victory and the defeat are determined by internal causes. The one is victorious either because it is strong or because of its competent generalship, the other is vanquished either because it is weak or because of its incompetent generalship; it is through internal causes that external causes bring about change.[4-400] In 1927,[4-401] the defeat of the proletariat by the bourgeoisie came about through the opportunism then to be found within the Chinese proletariat itself (inside the Chinese Communist Party).[4-402] To lead a revolution to victory a class or a political party must rely on its own political line having no mistakes,[4-403] and on the solidity of its own political organization. In China, the loss of Manchuria and the crisis in North China are due principally to China’s weakness (because of the defeat of the 1927 revolution, the people lost political power, and this produced civil war and a dictatorial system). Japanese imperialism took advantage of this situation and invaded. In order to drive out the Japanese robbers, we must rely principally on the national united front to carry out a determined revolutionary war. “Only after something has first become rotten will worms breed in it; and only after a man first doubts will malicious talk make its entry.” This is a saying by Su Dongpo.[4-404] “When internal examination discovers nothing wrong, what is there to be anxious about, what is there to fear?”[4-405] This is a Confucian truth. If a person strengthens himself in his youth, he doesn’t easily catch cold; the Soviet Union to this day has not suffered attack by Japan, and this is due completely to its strength. “When Lei Gong beat the bean curd, he chose a weak object to bully.”[4-406] Things under heaven depend solely on one’s strength, so it is no use blaming heaven or other people; man is the master of his own fate, difficulties can be overcome, and external conditions can be changed; this is our philosophy.

We oppose the metaphysical view of development, and advocate the dialectical view of development. We are advocates of the theory of change, and oppose the theory of non-changeability;[4-407] we are advocates of the theory of internal causation, and oppose the theory of external causation.

[p. 244] II. The Law of Identity in Formal Logic and the Law of Contradiction in Dialectics

We have discussed above the metaphysical and dialectical views of development. The struggle between these two ways of looking at the world constitutes the struggle in methods of thought between formal logic and dialectical logic.

Bourgeois formal logic has three fundamental laws: the first is called the law of identity, the second the law of contradiction, and the third the law of excluded middle. What is the law of identity? The law of identity states: In the process of thought, a concept remains unchanged throughout, being forever equal to itself. For example, a chemical element is forever equal to that chemical element; China is forever equal to China, and a certain person is forever equal to that certain person. Its formula is A equals A; this law is metaphysical. Engels says that it is the fundamental law of the old view of the universe. Its mistake lies in not recognizing contradiction and change within a thing, and because of this, removing temporariness and relativity from a concept, attributing it with permanence and absoluteness. It doesn’t understand that a thing and the concept that reflects a thing are both relative and changeable; a certain chemical element is certainly not forever equal to that certain element, and all forms of chemical element are changing. China also will not forever be equivalent to China, for China is changing; the age-old feudal China of the past and the free and liberated China of the future are two things. A certain person is also not forever equal to that certain person; a person’s physique and thought change. Concepts in thought are reflections of objective things, and objective things are changing; the content of a concept is also changing. In fact, there is no such thing as a concept which is forever equivalent to itself.