Zhang Dongsun’s 1918 Chuanghualun

translation of Bergson’s évolution créatrice (1907)

amply demonstrates the transcultural strategy of the Outlook on Life School led by Liang Qichao with his coterie. Although the Science and Outlook on Life Debate was not triggered until 1923

Zhang’s Chuanghualun had already laid the theoretical foundation for Liang’s coterie. Since Zhang knew little French

his translation was mainly based on the 1911 English translation and the 1913 Japanese translation. Bergson intended to solve the opposition between "theory of knowledge" and "theory of life

" or between physical sciences and biological sciences

and argued that the two are supplementary to each other. For Bergson

the essence of science is reason

while the essence of life is consciousness. In the Japanese translation "consciousness" is rendered as "yishi"意识

which is a Buddhist term. Instead

Zhang Dongsun uses "heart"心to translate the term

taking the idea from Mencius. Another key concept in Bergson’s book is "la durée

" the central feature of "organic memory

" which refers to the memory of both body and consciousness (or "heart" ). So Zhang Dongsun’s Chuanghualun highlights the paradox between scientific rationalism and heart.