In July 1917, Hu Shi was invited by Cai Yuanpei to serve as professor of liberal arts at National Peking University, teaching the history of ancient Chinese philosophy, Chinese classics, and advanced English rhetoric. Hu Shi taught and wrote teaching materials at the same time. Gu Jiegang once recommended to his classmate Fu Sinian: "Mr. Hu's teachings are indeed not bad. He has vision, courage, and decisiveness. He is indeed a capable historian of philosophy."
From 1919 to 1937. Hu Shi taught the history of Chinese philosophy at Peking University many times, and mainly taught the history of medieval philosophy and modern philosophy. The "Outline of the History of Chinese Philosophy" (Volume 1) published in February 1919 was revised based on the content of the lecture notes. Hu Shi was the first person to adopt the system and methods of modern Western philosophy to study Chinese philosophy. Because of his appearance, the history of Chinese thought began to take shape. He is pioneering in the history of Chinese philosophy, and even in the research of various special histories and general histories. He is considered to be the originator of the history of Chinese philosophical thought.
"Hu Shi's Philosophy Classes at Peking University" is compiled based on all of Hu Shi's philosophy lectures at Peking University, and combined with Hu Shi's other works on Chinese philosophy. It strives to build the most complete philosophical system of Hu Shi for readers, allowing readers to directly experience the style of the philosophical master.
