Summary: This paper deals with the language of Chinese intellectual discourse and explores its dynamism as a discourse that is radically cosmopolitan while retaining an ancient and destiny-inspired rhetoric cum rationale. In this paper, I argue in favor of translating the Chinese term for intellectual discourse <em>(sixiang)</em> as “critical inquiry”, as opposed to the conventional idea of “modern Chinese thought”. The latter tends to suggest a discourse of settled ideas that is quite at odds with the agonistic nature of Chinese intellectual discourse. By understanding <em>sixiang</em> as critical inquiry, we are more effectively reminded that this discourse bears the legacy of its earlier incarnations in China’s war-torn and violent twentieth century. As critical inquiry, <em>sixiang</em> is shaped and burdened by the instrumentalization of language as a nation-building tool and a revolutionary weapon. Focusing on the work of China’s best known modern writer and critic, Lu Xun, the paper examines how an enduring anticipation of collective betterment (or national perfection) predisposes the discourse of <em>sixiang</em> towards certitude. In this regard, it will also consider the ways in which <em>sixiang</em> is enriched by linguistic play that acknowledges the contingency of beliefs and values on the words used in their articulation.
