On the evening of April 12, 2026, Professor Zhang Yixi from the Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, was invited to our college. She delivered an academic lecture entitled Looking Back from Late Ming Literary Societies: Knowledge Allocation and Historical Transitions Reflected in A History of Thought of Ordinary People in Conference Room A255, Humanities Building.

Co-organized by the Social Science Office and the School of Humanities of Nanchang University, the lecture was hosted by Teacher Zhao Wei from the History Department. More than forty teachers and students of the History Department attended and exchanged ideas.

The lecture centered on petty scholars and literary societies for civil service examination essays amid the rise and fall of Yangming Philosophy in the late Ming Dynasty. Professor Zhang Yixi pointed out that petty scholars in the Ming Dynasty were vital cultural figures active between great Confucian scholars and rural communities, and also key promoters of Yangming Philosophy’s transformation from a doctrinal theory to a social ideological reform.

After experiencing two historical upheavals—the Tumu Crisis and the decline of ideology and culture, petty scholars took knowledge as their weapon to survive the turmoil. They integrated and allocated knowledge through civil service examination essay writing, and developed literary societies for such essays into a tangible community network for building reputation, exchanging resources and seeking development opportunities. With a pragmatic shift, they achieved their own growth and expansion. The intellectual history of ordinary people also provides us with more ideas and perspectives for understanding major historical issues.

After the lecture, Professor Zhang Yixi had heated exchanges with teachers and students, and patiently answered all the questions raised by the audience.

This lecture not only presented cutting-edge academic research findings, but also built a platform for teachers and students on campus to communicate with distinguished academic scholars. The lecture came to a successful conclusion amid warm applause.