Why did Sun Yat-sen leave medicine to pursue political change in China?

Sun Yat-sen, who graduated from the College of Medicine for Chinese in Hong Kong in 1892, abandoned his medical practice in Guangzhou to pursue political change due to his deep ambition and dissatisfaction with the state of China.1

He was troubled by the Qing dynasty’s adherence to traditional ways while the nation suffered humiliation at the hands of more technologically advanced powers. In 1894, he traveled north to present a reform program to Li Hongzhang, the governor-general of Zhili province, hoping to help China gain strength. When his proposals were largely ignored, he concluded that political reform through the existing system was not viable. This rejection served as a catalyst for his shift toward an anti-dynastic stance, leading him to found the Revive China Society and dedicate his life to revolutionary activity.12