近代儒商的一面旗帜——试论近代苏商思想与实践

A Banner for the Confucian Merchants in Chinese Modern Times——the Thoughts and Practice of Jiangsu Merchants in Chinese Modern Times

鸦片战争以后,江苏成为中国资本主义发展的重要基地,这中间,近代苏商群体及其领军人物则起了极其重要的旗帜作用。近代苏商亦商亦儒,人物众多、群星灿烂,且各具所长,影响深远。他们率先投资近代企业,敢为人先,具有示范效应,开一代风气之先;他们参政议政,争权保商,是学习和实践西方民主政治的倡导者;他们爱国报国,努力反哺社会,大大提升了近代苏商的境界;他们提倡重视合作,彼此参股,形成了近代苏商的团队精神;在某种意义上甚至可以说铸造了近代苏商之魂。近代苏商的思想与实践无愧为近代儒商的一面旗帜。

After the Opium War, Jia ngsu tumed into an important base of Chinese capitalism. In this period, the group of Jiangsu merchants and their leading figures played a significant role. The great multitude of modem times Jiangsu merchants, who were at once Confucian, did well in different respects in different ways, producing farreaching influence. They took the lead in investing in modem industries, which set a good example for others; they participated in politics, struggled for political status to protect their business and advocated the study and practice of the Western democratic politics; being patriotic, they greatly upgraded the spiritual realm of merchants; they initiat- ed cooperation among themselves, developing the teamwork among the Jiangsu merchants. The thoughts and practice of modem times Jiangsu merchants deserve a banner for the Confucian merchants in Chinese modem times.