Principal and Non-principal Aspect of a Contradiction

A pair of philosophical categories that reveal the different status, functions and interrelations of various contradictions within things. The principal aspect is the one playing the leading role in the contradiction, which gains the dominant position in the development of things. The aspect that does not possess the dominant position and does not play a leading role in the development of things is the non-principal or secondary aspect of a contradiction.

In his On Contradiction, Mao Zedong placed special emphasis on the particularity aspect of a contradiction, and constructed a rigorous logical system to analyze the particularity of a contradiction. In any contradiction, the development of the contradictory aspects is uneven.  An equilibrium is only temporary and relative, while unevenness is absolute. Of the two contradictory aspects, one must be principal and the other must be secondary. The principal aspect is the one playing the leading role in a contradiction.

The nature of a thing is determined mainly by the principal aspect of a contradiction, the aspect which has gained the dominant position. But this situation is not static; the principal and the non-principal aspects of a contradiction transform themselves into each other and the nature of the thing changes accordingly.

In each thing there is contradiction between its new and its old aspects, and this gives rise to a series of struggles with many twists and turns. As a result of these struggles, the new aspect changes from being minor to being major and rises to predominance. The supersession of the old by the new is a general, eternal and inviolable law of the universe.

In order to correctly analyze contradictions and understand things, we must distinguish between the principal and the secondary contradictions. If we fail to grasp the principal aspects of contradictions, we cannot distinguish the nature of things and distinguish the boundaries of different things. However, the non-principal aspect of contradiction is also an indispensable factor in the development of things, and it also affects and restricts the principal aspect of contradiction. Thus, the secondary aspect of contradiction should not be ignored. Moreover, sometimes in order to strengthen or solve the principal aspect of the contradiction, we should start with the secondary aspects of contradictions.

Mao Zedong pointed out that the character of the contradiction between the productive forces and the relations of production, theory and practice, the economic base and the superstructure can also be transformed under certain conditions. The productive forces, practice and the economic base generally play the principal and decisive role. However, when it is impossible for the productive forces to develop without a change in the relations of production, then the change in the relations of production plays the principal and decisive role. In the same way, the creation and advocacy of revolutionary theory plays the principal and decisive role in those times without revolutionary theory or revolutionary movement. When the political or cultural superstructure obstructs the development of the economic base, political and cultural changes become principal and decisive. This does not go against materialism, on the contrary, it avoids mechanical materialism and firmly upholds dialectical materialism.

In our cognitive and practical activities, we should not only examine the distinctive character of these two facets of contradiction, but also pay attention to distinguish the principal and secondary aspects of contradiction, unify the theory of two points and the theory of principal contradiction, and pay attention to the mutual connection and transformation between the principal and secondary aspects of contradiction.