ABSTRACT
This chapter, after providing a definition of the notion of pragmatic civilization based on a large quantity of first-hand data, distinguishes between “civilized public discourses” and “uncivilized public discourses” and then analyzes their pragmalinguistic features. It then demonstrates people’s attitude towards uncivilized public discourses based on interview results, suggesting that there is a low level of acceptance for them. Finally, it investigates the tendency of public discourse in modern Chinese society on the basis of three case studies. It is found that the majority of the public discourses in the contemporary Chinese society achieve the goal of constructing pragmatic civilization. Human-oriented and care-loaded, they demonstrate the color of humanity and beauty, with a positive impact on the development of the right views of life and value. Thus, their tendency towards civilization is clear.
