6. Content Analysis of Chinese Civics Textbooks 1 Presentation
7.5 Group Identity
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Military service is also mentioned as well. The way that professions are shown depicts a hierarchical society and reinforces obedience. In the school, the authority figure is the teacher, but in society the authority figure is the government official. When choosing a profession, students are encouraged to think about the needs of the country first. In the Japanese texts, many different professions are presented, but scholars, military figures, and businessmen are most prominent. This is somewhat at odds with government policy, which encouraged Taiwanese to remain in agriculture or to only pursue certain higher-status professions in fields such as teaching or medicine. That being said, like the civics texts, the portrayal of professions emphasizes using one’s knowledge and wealth to aid the country and society. All in all, there is very little in the way of professional guidance.
Whatever course they pursue, students are exhorted to keep the good of the nation at the forefront of their thoughts.
7.5 Group Identity
Perhaps the most important characteristics that the two sets of texts share is that they both reinforce collectivism and group identity. This is evidenced by the common theme of placing the importance of the group above individual concerns. Interestingly, this is cultural rather than moral in nature, and stands in stark contrast to the individualism of the Western world. In the texts, this devaluation of individualism is manifested in a number of ways. While they are no lessons that exclusively deal with this topic, the theme is present in many lessons. Lessons on patriotism, responsibility, filial piety, civic virtue, etc. all are used to reinforce the idea that the group is more important than the self.
This group could be the nation, society, one’s family, neighbors, peer groups, etc. While both Japanese and Chinese texts exhibit this theme, there are some slight differences.
In the Japanese texts, one way individualism is suppressed is through emphasis on self-sacrifice. Self-sacrifice ranges from being willing to suffer hardship for the sake of others to sacrificing one’s life. The emphasis on being willing to sacrifice one’s life is perhaps the most common though, and this sentiment is typically contained in lessons on loyalty and patriotism. Lessons on duty and responsibility also portray individuals as having such
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a strong sense of responsibility that they are willing to give up their own lives to carry out their duties. The key point is that the sacrifice is made for the emperor and the nation.
Soldiers and warriors are often depicted sacrificing themselves, and other lessons also instruct students to be ready to do the same. The following is just one of many examples of this:
「…もし國に事變が起ったら勇氣を奮ひ一身をさゝげて、君國のために盡さ
なければなりません。」
“…should a national emergency arise, we must muster our courage, sacrifice ourselves, and for the sake of our ruler and nation we must serve to the utmost of our abilities.”54
The role of the individual is diminished to the point where sacrificing it for the greater good is portrayed as the best course of action. Defense of the nation and preservation of the imperial line is seen as more important than life itself. There are also instances of individuals being compared to organs in the body. That is, if one does not function as it should then the whole body suffers. This is not unlike the metaphorical cog in the machine. Similar comparisons exist in the Chinese civics texts.
The other main way the individual is portrayed as subordinate to the group is through constant reminders to think of others first. This line of thinking appears in a variety of lessons, including lessons on etiquette, health and hygiene, civic virtue, empathy and compassion, etc. What all of these lessons have in common is that they teach children to consider others and to behave in a way that does not cause trouble or inconvenience for others. This is a very important concept in Japanese culture, and in the textbook it is extended to classmates, neighbors, family, and others in society and the nation.
「體が弱くて度々病氣になるのは自分の不幸であるばかりでなく、一家の難
54 Common School Ethics, Vol. 6 (1930), 51.
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儀になり又國家の損失にもなります。」
“Having a weak constitution and often getting sick is not merely one’s own misfortune. It brings hardship upon one’s family and is also a loss to the nation.”55
Other lessons encourage students to think of others by maintaining clean public space, not damaging public property, waiting in line for things, etc. In general, students are taught to think of others before themselves, because it makes society more harmonious.
While this is not suppression of individualism on the same level as self-sacrifice, it still forces the students to think about themselves as a member of a group first.
The Chinese civics texts also emphasize the importance of the group over the individual, but in a different manner. Instead of encouraging students to think of others more generally, the lessons constantly remind students that they are part of a group. These groups include the family, school clubs, society at large, the Chinese ethnicity, the nation, etc. The nation though is by far the most important group. The lessons use patriotism and nationalism to reinforce group identity. Students must not only think about their own benefit, but must think about how to benefit the Chinese nation. The following excerpts from the texts are just a few examples of how students are encouraged to put the nation and the group before themselves.
「我們既然明白了法律的作用，在學校裏就要遵守校規，在社會上就要遵守國 家法律。我們必須隨時隨地檢點自己的行為，不以個人的利益妨害國家的公益，
不以個人的自由侵犯別人的自由，然後法律纔容易推行，社會纔課永久保持良 好的秩序。」
“We must not allow individual gain to jeopardize the greater good of the nation. We must not allow individual freedom to infringe on the freedom of others. Only then can the law be easily carried out, and society will be able to maintain sound and
55 Common School Ethics, Vol. 5 (1930), 15.
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lasting order.”56
「節約是一種美德，和吝嗇不同。吝嗇是自私自利，節約是把應該節省下來的財 物儲蓄起來，移作將來其他有益的用途，或貢獻國家，或用於公共福利…我們把 錢儲蓄在國家銀行，或郵局裏面，或購買國家債票，不但應當可靠而且對國家也 有很大的幫助。」
“Frugality is a virtue, and is different from miserliness. Miserliness is being selfish with no regard for others, while frugality is saving one’s leftover money and making use of it in the future, contributing it to the nation, or using it for public good… Saving our money in the national bank or post office, or using it to buy national bonds is not only safe and reliable, but it also is a great help to the nation.”57
The other way in which civics texts promote this idea is by emphasizing responsibility.
Every individual has a role within the group and is responsible for carrying out that role.
The lesson entitled ‘Everyone’s Duty and Responsibility to Society’ further accentuates the importance of the group over the individual. Lessons on democratic process and on the rights and duties of citizens also reinforce this. The following excerpt from the lesson entitled ‘The Individual and the Group’ clearly spells out which is more important:
「在家庭裏，我們和父母、兄弟、姊妹在一七，這家庭就是一個團體。有了這 個團體，我們纔能得到撫養，生長成人。在學校裏，我們和許多同學、老師在 一起，著學校也是一個團體。有了這個團體，我們纔能受到教育，增長知識。
在社會上，我們還要參加很多團體，這纔能在生活上，得到各種互助合作的利 益。我們的國家，更是一個大團體。有了國家的保護，全國的人纔能享受安定 的生活和幸福。從上面的一些話，可以知道每一個人都是不能離開團體生活的。
我們年紀小的人，需要團體的幫助更多。所以我們應當愛護團體，並且要在團 體中盡到個人的責任。」
56 Civics, Vol. 4 (1950), 17.
57 Civics Textbook, Vol. 1 (1957), 4.
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“The family, and being together with our parents and siblings, is a group. Only because we have this group can we be taken care of and grow up to become adults.
The school, and being together with our classmates and teachers, is also a group.
Only because we have this group can we receive an education and increase our knowledge. In society, we must participate in many groups, only then can we can obtain the various benefits of mutual cooperation in our lives. Our nation is thus a big group. Only because we have the protection of the country can the people live safely and happily. From this, we can know that an individual cannot leave the group and live on their own. We are young, so we need the help of the group even more.
So, we must love and protect the group, and do our utmost to fulfill our individual responsibilities within the group.”58
Unlike the Japanese texts, the civics texts for the most part do not include any lessons which stress the importance of individual achievement. This further reinforces the idea that the individual is only as important as his/her role in the group. While not a moral value, the theme of placing the group above the individual is a key characteristic that both sets of texts share. This theme is also one of the more distinct features of Taiwanese moral education, especially when compared to Western culture and morality.
58 Civics Textbook, Vol. 1 (1958), 1-2.
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