 According to Laurence Schneider, the "most persistent theme" in Gu's writings is "the central role of the intellectual in Chinese history, and the centrality of history to the Chinese intellectual".He attributed China's failure to modernize to opportunistic intellectuals who allied with the aristocracy, rather than pursuing truth.In order to restore China to greatness, Gu, along with his mentor Hu Shih, advocated a non-political role for Chinese intellectuals, against the emerging trend of Marxist histories.