Ideal of social values for hermeneutics of human history
pp. 215-224
in: Deshun Li (ed), Values of our times, Berlin, Springer, 2013Abstract
The history of human being is not only the process of subject's activity with pursuing, creating and realizing the value, at the same time, it is also that of objective history, determined and restricted by the internal law. The contradictory and unified relationship between them constitutes "the mystery of human history", which is very hard to be solved for a long time. The mystery of human history lies in social values. In this paper, I try to prove that the ideal of social values for understanding of human history is a possible way to reveal the mystery of history. This paper will focus on the establishment of the ideal of social values. Firstly, I shall argue the dual values, that is, material value and human value, which are the secret of the development of human society and history. Then I shall point out that in the process of pursuit of individual values and community values, it also contains the creation and realization of social values. On the basis, I shall claim that the nature of social values is striving of everyone for his own nature as a man. Finally, I shall come to the conclusion that the development of human history is the process of pursuing, creating and realizing the social values.