Abstract:
The cultural modernization of China and Sri Lanka shares several analogous historical driving
forces. Both countries possess mature and stable traditional cultures, have been influenced by
Western cultural paradigms, and have experienced national liberation movements in which nationalist
ideologies and movements played a significant role in shaping cultural modernization.
Yet, despite these similar historical factors, the outcomes of cultural modernization in the two
countries differ markedly. This divergence is primarily reflected in two aspects: first, the degree
of preservation and the functional role of traditional culture in contemporary societies vary
greatly. In China, traditional Confucian values and the patriarchal system have largely receded
in modern life, whereas in Sri Lanka, Buddhism continues to exert a visible and mainstream
influence in contemporary society. Second, the institutional cultures of the two countries also
differ significantly. China has developed a socialist institutional culture with distinct Chinese
characteristics, while Sri Lanka has largely retained the Western institutional culture inherited
from British colonial rule. This study identifies two principal factors underlying these differences.
First, traditional culture experienced distinct fates within each country’s modernization
process. In China, cultural modernization emerged within an anti-traditionalist intellectual climate,
whereas in Sri Lanka, traditional culture was revitalized and mobilized as a foundational
force supporting modernization through religious nationalism. These contrasting experiences
have profoundly shaped the role and status of traditional culture in their respective modern societies.
Second, the ideological foundations of modernization differed markedly: China’s modernization
was driven by revolutionary ideology, while Sri Lanka’s was guided primarily by
reformist currents. These ideological distinctions fostered divergent institutional and cultural
configurations. This comparative analysis reveals that although China and Sri Lanka shared
similar historical motivations for cultural modernization, the different approaches to implementation
have led to different outcomes.
