Abstract:

Political science education in modern universities in Shanghai first took shape during the late Qing period. It gradually evolved from independent courses and academic programs into formal departments. By the early 1930s, as many as 11 universities in Shanghai had established political science departments. Given the diverse nature of higher education institutions in Shanghai, these departments differed in faculty composition and curriculum emphasis, thereby forming a pluralistic academic landscape. Some focused on the teaching and research of international relations to serve the government; some adopted liberal political theories to criticize the Kuomintang regime; others took advantage of political science departments to secretly spread Marxism. Subsequently, the Kuomintang government restricted the development of political science departments at the educational level, while recruiting scholars into political service and excluding professors who advocated liberalism and Marxist political theories at the political level. Thereafter, the political science departments in Shanghai generally turned toward historicization, abandoning substantive political inquiry and losing touch with political reality. The seeds of the discipline’s decline were thus sown from within.

Key words: modern universities in Shanghai, political science department, discipline setup, academic style