Background: Connotations of Chinese Dream

Chinese Communist Party leader Xi Jinping said during a museum tour in November of 2012 the Chinese dream meant for him the "great renewal of the Chinese nation."

In November of 2012, soon after the conclusion of the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC), President Xi Jinping put forward, for the first time, the idea of the Chinese Dream on a visit to "The Road towards Renewal" exhibition at the National Museum of China.

The great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation "is a dream of the whole nation, as well as of every individual", he said.

 

In March of 2013, Xi further elaborated on the Chinese Dream in his speech at the closing ceremony of the First Session of the 12th National People's Congress. Since then, he has talked about the concept on a number of occasions.

Xi stressed that the Chinese Dream means the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. It embodies achieving prosperity for the country, renewal of the nation and happiness for the citizens. Only when the country is doing well, can the nation and people do well.

Xi emphasized that the Chinese Dream in essence means the dream of the people. The Chinese Dream is to let people enjoy better education, more stable employment, higher incomes, a greater degree of social security, better medical and health care, improved housing conditions and a better environment. It is to let our children grow up well, have satisfactory jobs and live better lives.

Xi stressed that all the Chinese people who live in our great country at this great time have the opportunity to enjoy a successful life, the opportunity to realize one's dream, and the opportunity to grow and progress together with the country.

Xi also emphasized that the Chinese Dream is a dream for peace, development, cooperation and mutual benefit for all. It is connected to the beautiful dreams of the people in other countries. The Chinese Dream will not only benefit the Chinese people, but also people of all countries in the world.

Xi proposed taxonomy of five dimensions from which to analyze the concept - national, personal, historical, global and antithetical.

The "national Chinese Dream", as Xi described, is a big dream for the Chinese nation: "History tells us that everybody has one's future and destiny closely connected to those of the country and nation."

The "personal Chinese Dream", for instance, focuses on the well-being of individual citizens and thus modifies traditional notions of the primacy of the collective over the individual.

In the global prospect, the Chinese Dream will change the global landscape, which was shaped by Western countries over the past two centuries during industrialization. The new global landscape will be established through international rules and experiences of both developed and emerging countries, he said.