The Dialectic of Imitation and Innovation in Our Era

Xiao Huang : China’s rapid development over the past 40 years relied heavily on imitating the West. Must it now shift towards independent innovation?

DOORM: In the early stages of development, learning openly from others was a wise path for a latecomer. As the space for imitation narrows, innovation becomes an inevitable choice for the civilization’s continuity. This is not merely a technological transition but also an expression of cultural confidence—the “reconstructive character” of the Chinese nation is precisely a historical cycle of moving from absorbing external nourishment to generating endogenous creation.