Abstract: If “abstraction” is an indispensable element in human thought processes,how can a thought process that includes “abstraction” elements avoid drawing conclusions about “abstractness”? This is the theoretical task that Marx set for himself.From a dialectical perspective,the legitimacy of the concept of “abstraction” can only be established in the presence of the concept of “concreteness”.Accordingly,human thinking methods can be operationalized into four types:“abstraction-concreteness”,“concreteness-abstraction”,“abstraction-concreteness-abstraction*”,and “concreteness-abstraction-concreteness*”.Formally,the first three thinking methods start or end with “abstraction”,where “concreteness” serves merely as a logical tool for verifying or applying abstract concepts.Only the fourth thinking method starts from “concreteness” and ultimately returns to “concreteness*”,with “abstraction” as an intermediate step to better grasp the essence of the “concreteness”.In terms of content,the essence of abstract thinking lies in the suppression of human history by focusing solely on logical categories or formulas,resulting in a thought process that has rational logic but lacks human history.To avoid becoming abstract,a historical perspective and method are necessary,overcoming the limitations of “pure logical formulas of movement”,ultimately achieving the unity of logic and history in a non-abstract sense.This fundamental shift in thinking methods holds revolutionary significance in the history of human thought and can be regarded as one of the most important legacies Marx left to posterity.

Key words: abstraction, concreteness, logic, history, abstractness, Marx