CIVILIZATION STRUCTURE THEORY
Cultural and Political Economics
Civilization Structure Theory
From water governance to governance of metal — a theoretical coordinate for Chinese modernization
Finance is not an intermediary for allocating funds;
it is the relations of production that dominate modern society.
Whoever controls finance controls the ownership of the means of production, the disposition of labor, and the distribution of surplus — and thereby determines the nature of the state and the direction of civilization.
- 壹 Civilization · Unit of analysis The three-tier value structure + the three internal relations (subordination · containment · delimitation · adaptation · substance-function) dissect the continuity and alienation of civilizations.
- 贰 Finance · The unifying engine Using "finance-led relations of production" as the engine, it welds civilizational theory, political economy, and institutional design into a single chain.
- 叁 Capital policy · Policy outlet Establishing a third macro-control instrument alongside monetary and fiscal policy, returning capital formation and its returns to the people.
This site is the official academic portal of Zhang Keliang's original theoretical system, Cultural and Political Economics. The two-volume arc — Civilizational Reconstruction and Financial Rise (inner volume: the reconstruction of civilization + outer volume: the rise of finance) sets direction and builds the skeleton; Capital, Finance and the State ("the gushing spring") builds institutions and fills in the muscle. The ultimate aim — "the transcendence of finance is the only thorough transcendence."
Core Claims
Finance-led relations of production
In one sentence, finance is restored from a "fund-intermediation intermediary" to the relations of production that dominate modern society: every financial act simultaneously rewrites who owns the means of production, who disposes labor, and who distributes surplus.
This yields the sharpest criterion — the nature of the state is determined by who controls the financial system: when the state controls capital it is socialism; when capital controls the state it is capitalism. The new book further unfolds this from a single essential judgment into a two-dimensional structure via "the wave-particle duality of finance" (particle = instrument / productive force; wave = system / relations of production).
Proposition 1 →Three-tier value structure & internal relations
A civilization's value system divides into three tiers — ideal / norm / utility; the three tiers are not isolated modules but the living relations of subordination · containment · delimitation · adaptation · substance-function — the upper tier commands and delimits, yet must contain and explain the lower, and the three are always in the dynamic equilibrium of "both adapting to and tensing against one another."
Hence a precise reading of Chinese and Western civilizations: the West's malady is not a "break between tiers" but the binary split presupposed by the "rational economic man" of the ideal tier; China is not "naturally self-repairing" but continuously enters new forms through civilizational reconstruction.
Theory orientation map →Capital policy · The third instrument
Beyond "monetary policy + fiscal policy," establish a third macro-control instrument — capital policy: the central bank supplies water, fiscal policy digs the channels, capital irrigates.
Its institutional form is "one body, two wings": the body = the capital market proper (the primary market creates capital, the secondary optimizes it); the two wings = the stabilization fund (secondary-market stabilizer) and the venture-capital guidance fund (primary-market incubator). It also opens the central bank's "second channel" for injecting base money via the capital market; its institutional destination is nation–capital integrated mixed ownership, returning capital formation and its returns to the people.
Proposition 3 →System Overview
Two diagrams to grasp the skeleton of this theory — how distribution is layered, and how capital policy lands. The full version and the ten core propositions are in Theory.
InteractiveHover (or tap on mobile, Tab to focus) any module to see its explanation.
The three-tier structure of distribution · see Proposition 6
InteractiveHover (or tap on mobile, Tab to focus) any module to see its explanation.
Capital policy: one body, two wings · see Proposition 4
Getting Started
Nearly 600 pieces on the site — no need to read from the beginning. Follow these four steps and build the full framework in about two hours.
- Step 1 · Build concepts Civilization Structure Theory: a theoretical reconstruction from Cultural and Political Economics First clarify the two foundations: the "three-tier value structure" and "finance-led relations of production." ~7,000 words.
- Step 2 · See the outlet Capital Policy: the third instrument of macro-control How theory lands in policy — a third instrument alongside monetary and fiscal, and the institutional form of "one body, two wings." ~6,000 words.
- Step 3 · Go deep systematically Theory Framework · Configuration + Engine (full overview) Ten core propositions explained in detail, with horizontal comparison, vertical coordinates, and paradigm assessment. Suggest reading with the proposition index.
- Step 4 · Keep following Newsletter archive (full 2018–2026) Timely application of theory to real issues. Or use site search to find by keyword.
If you only want a quick judgment of "what this theory says," go straight to the theory orientation map and Proposition 1. Look up unfamiliar terms in the glossary; when citing, every article provides GB/T 7714 / APA / MLA formats at the bottom, one-click copy.
On-site Entries
📐 Theory Framework
Presented completely through the dual perspective of configuration + engine: the theory orientation map (three blocks + the finance-led relations of production engine), horizontal comparison with the mainstream "humanistic economics" (9 dimensions + 1 penetration, plus a twelve-dimension Deep Comparative Study), vertical coordinates in the modern intellectual genealogy (12 reference scholars + the three-tier all-pass yardstick), paradigm assessment, and ten core propositions explained in detail.
Enter →📚 Books
Three books: How the New Third Board Is Changing China (2017, the practical starting point, where the "Cultural and Political Economics" framework was first proposed) → Civilizational Reconstruction and Financial Rise (published 2025, inner volume: reconstruction of civilization + outer volume: rise of finance) → Capital, Finance and the State ("the gushing spring," in progress). From the New Third Board all the way to "the transcendence of finance."
Enter →✒️ Cultural & Political Economics
The web version of the "Cultural and Political Economics" newsletter — 231 articles archived (2018–2026). Covers three themes: theory construction, current issues, and media interviews, synced with the newsletter's first release.
Enter →📊 Capital Market Commentary
The web version of the "New Third Board Society" newsletter — 61 articles archived. Focuses on capital market reform, the BSE / New Third Board, inclusive finance, registration-based IPO, and SME financing, archived by year.
Enter →Theory Research September 2026
- Theory Framework · Configuration + Engine (full overview) Overview · three blocks + ten core propositions
- Civilization Structure Theory and Humanistic Economics · Deep Comparative Study Horizontal comparison · twelve-dimension systematic comparison + separate assessments + dual-drive judgment
- Two "humanity–economy" narratives: a systematic comparison with mainstream "humanistic economics" Horizontal comparison · 9 dimensions + 1 penetration · 30 pages
- With whom can Zhang Keliang be compared? — Modern intellectual coordinates (configuration-parallel yardstick) Vertical coordinates · 12 reference scholars · 18 pages
- With whom can Zhang Keliang be compared? — Modern intellectual coordinates (three-tier all-pass yardstick reassessment) Vertical coordinates · Kojin Karatani study + 15-point action list · 24 pages
- Cultural and Political Economics paradigm assessment — a refutable review Paradigm assessment · four-dimension review + eight structural gaps + twelve improvement suggestions
Representative Articles
- Civilization Structure Theory: a theoretical reconstruction from Cultural and Political Economics Theory construction · long essay · 7,000 words
- The BSE: a test field for capital-market inclusive finance Current issue · long essay · 5,000 words
- Capital Policy: the third instrument of macro-control Theory construction · long essay · 6,000 words
- Hydraulic society and financial society: from maternal-right distribution to capital parity Civilization-history proposition · long essay · 6,500 words
- From the political philosophy of water governance to the capital-policy toolbox Civilization history · Proposition 7 · excerpt
- First distribution determines the right to development · the maternal-right distribution thesis Distribution theory · Proposition 6 · excerpt
This site is the web version of the "Cultural and Political Economics" newsletter — making the theory indexable by search engines, citable by peers, and forming a permanent archive. If you find a passage worth citing, please follow the academic citation norms: author, source, and a link to this archive.
Recent Updates September 2026
View all Cultural and Political Economics articles → · View all Capital Market Reform commentaries →