book cover,
Lectures on politicsWritten by Professor Bao Gansheng of the School of International Relations and Public Relations, Fudan University. It is based on an audio course he conducted on the knowledge sharing platform Dedao. [Photo provided to China Daily]
The book shows how reason and logic can help understand a subject, reports Yangyang.
Advances in social media have allowed users to express their opinions online and comment on a variety of topics, including political issues. However, since most people have limited knowledge about such issues, social media is flooded with conspiracy theories, which can lead to hostility, hate speech, or worse.
Bao Gansheng, a professor at Fudan University’s School of International Relations and Public Relations, says one reason for this is that the public lacks a fundamental understanding of politics.
“In popular culture, people’s political views not only contradict facts and logic, but are often aimed at playing with emotions. Studying political science helps people understand how to use reason and logic. “We can free ourselves from the political prejudices created by popular culture,” Bao writes in his latest book, “Political Lectures.”
Lectures on Politics, recently published by Dedao, a knowledge-sharing platform owned by New Star Press, is based on an audio course Bao conducted on the platform. Launched in 2019, this 30-episode course of his has over 1 million hits from his 40,000 users, making it one of his most popular courses on the platform.
Through a total of 30 lectures, we systematically explain the basic logic of political phenomena from five perspectives, including the state of power, through 30 keywords such as state, war, monarchy, bureaucracy, republic, parliament, democracy, and party. Building a framework for political science. Society, how society controls power, differences and conflicts in politics, and closely related political issues.
In this 249-page book, Bao uses concise language to guide readers into the world of politics, and each chapter focuses on interesting questions such as: “Why did democracy originate among pirates?” Why do wars shape countries? Why can monarchies last for thousands of years? Why are many African countries in decline despite having democratic systems? And why do many countries not support the creation of welfare states?
By referring to classic political problems in human civilization, Bao takes the reader back to the historical moment in question, sees how political inventions were born in different countries, and shows how political inventions were born at key moments. It examines the logic behind decisions and attempts to explore potential solutions. Improving politics within the narrow gap between idealism and reality.
Professor Li Yun of the School of Political Science and Public Administration, China University of Political Science and Law, commented on the book, “As Professor Bao Gangsheng said, politics is the art of balance.”
