[9] It systematically outlines the development of Chinese academic thought from the end of the Ming Dynasty to the beginning of the 20th century, over a period of more than 200 years.

[11] He asserted that the key difference between them lay in the underdevelopment of literature and fine art in the Qing.

[8] The book was translated into English by Immanuel C. Y. Hsu and published by Harvard University Press in 1959 with an Introduction by Benjamin I. Schwartz.

[12] Hsu provided a detailed interpretation of Liang's book in the process of translation.

This book revealed the academic situation in China between 1664 and 1911, and thus changed the perception of "unchanging China" in the Western mind, thus opening the door for Western scholars and students to understand modern Chinese history.