For more than a century scholars both inside and outside of China have undertaken the project of modernizing Confucianism, but few have been as successful or influential as Li Zehou (b. 1930). Since the 1950s, Li’s extensive efforts in this regard have in turn exerted a profound influence on Chinese modernization and resulted in his becoming one of China’s most prominent social critics. To transform Confucianism into a contemporary resource for positive change in China and elsewhere, Li has reinterpreted major ideas and concepts of classical Confucianism, including a rereading of the entire Analects, replete with his own philosophical speculations derived from other Chinese and Western traditions (most notably, the ideas of Kant and Marx), and developed an aesthetical theory that has proved especially far-reaching. Although the authors of this volume hail from East Asia, North America, and Europe and a wide variety of academic backgrounds and fields of study, they are unanimous in their appreciation of Li’s contributions to not only an evolving Confucian philosophy, but also world philosophy. They view Li first and foremost as a sui generis thinker with broad global interests and not one who fits neatly into any one philosophical category, Chinese or Western. This is clearly reflected in the chapters included here, which are organized into three parts: Li Zehou and the Modernization of Confucianism, Li Zehou’s Reconception of Confucian Philosophy, and Li Zehou’s Aesthetical Theory and Confucianism. Together they form a coherent narrative that reveals how Li has, for more than half a century, creatively studied, absorbed, and reconceptualized the Confucian ideational tradition to integrate it with Western philosophical elements and develop his own philosophical insights and original theories. At the same time, he has transformed and modernized Confucianism for the purpose of both coalescing with and reconstructing a new world cultural order.
Li Zehou is widely regarded as one of China’s most influential contemporary thinkers. He has produced influential theories of the development of Chinese thought and the place of aesthetics in Chinese ethics and value theory. This book is the first English-language translation of Li Zehou’s work on classical Chinese thought. It includes chapters on the classical Chinese thinkers, including Confucius, Mozi, Laozi, Sunzi, Xunzi and Zhuangzi, and also on later eras and thinkers such as Dong Zhongshu in the Han Dynasty and the Song-Ming Neo-Confucians. The essays in this book not only discuss these historical figures and their ideas, but also consider their historical significance, and how key themes from these early schools reappeared in and shaped later periods and thinkers. Taken together, they highlight the breadth of Li Zehou’s scholarship and his syncretic approach—his explanations of prominent thinkers and key periods in Chinese intellectual history blend ideas from both the Chinese and Western canons, while also drawing on contemporary thinkers in both traditions. The book also includes an introduction written by the translator that helpfully explains the significance of Li Zehou’s work and its prospects for fostering cross-cultural dialogue with Western philosophy. A History of Chinese Classical Thought will be of interest to advanced students and scholars interested in Chinese philosophy, comparative philosophy, and Chinese intellectual and social history.
Available for the first time in English, Li Zehou's philosophical aesthetics interpret the historical origins and evolution of aesthetic experience and their significance to the intellectual, emotional, and spiritual growth of human beings. Although LI's ideas have been debated in China for more than two decades, his conversations with Jane Cauvel will now allow Western students and philosophers to re-encounter Chinese and Western conceptions of aesthetics, and the way art shapes indiciduals, societies, technology, and the future of humankind.
Li Zehou (b. 1930) has been an influential thinker in China since the 1950s. Before moving to the U.S. in the wake of the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989, Li published works on Kant and traditional and contemporary Chinese philosophy. The present volume, a translation of his Huaxia meixue (1989), is considered among Li’s most significant works. Apart from its value as an introduction to the philosophy of one of contemporary China’s foremost intellectuals, The Chinese Aesthetic Tradition fills an important gap in the literature of Chinese aesthetics in English. It presents Li’s synthesis of the entire trajectory of Chinese aesthetic thought, from ancient times to the early modern period, incorporating pre-Confucian and Confucian ideas, Daoism, Chan Buddhism, and the influence of Western philosophy during the late-imperial period. As one of China’s As one of China's major contemporary philosophers and preeminent authority on Kant, Li is uniquely positioned to observe this trajectory and make it intelligible to today’s readers. The Chinese Aesthetic Tradition touches on all areas of artistic activity, including poetry, painting, calligraphy, architecture, and the "art of living." Right government, the ideal human being, and the path to spiritual transcendence all come under the provenance of aesthetic thought. According to Li this was the case from early Confucian explanations of poetry as that which gives expression to intent, through Zhuangzi’s artistic depictions of the ideal personality who discerns the natural way of things and lives according to it, to Chan Buddhist-inspired notions that nature and words can come together to yield insight and enlightenment. In this enduring and stimulating work, Li demonstrates conclusively the fundamental role of aesthetics in the development of the cultural and psychological structures in Chinese culture that define "humanity.
Winner of the 2019 Choice Outstanding Academic Title "The Origins of Chinese Thought offers an account of the origins and nature of a uniquely Chinese way of thinking that, carried through Confucian tradition, continues to define the character of Chinese culture and society. Li Zehou argues that vestiges of the practices of early shamanistic ritual, rationalized in ritual regulations and internalized in morals and values, continue to shape Chinese thought and relationships. This outlook and its understanding of the world, the divine, ourselves, one another, what is right and what is good differ fundamentally from other world traditions. As an alternative to modern liberalism, it offers unique resources for addressing modern Chinese—and even global—philosophic and moral issues.
Li Zehou (b. 1930) has been an influential thinker in China since the 1950s. Before moving to the U.S. in the wake of the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989, Li published works on Kant and traditional and contemporary Chinese philosophy. The present volume, a translation of his Huaxia meixue (1989), is considered among Li’s most significant works. Apart from its value as an introduction to the philosophy of one of contemporary China’s foremost intellectuals, The Chinese Aesthetic Tradition fills an important gap in the literature of Chinese aesthetics in English. It presents Li’s synthesis of the entire trajectory of Chinese aesthetic thought, from ancient times to the early modern period, incorporating pre-Confucian and Confucian ideas, Daoism, Chan Buddhism, and the influence of Western philosophy during the late-imperial period. As one of China’s As one of China's major contemporary philosophers and preeminent authority on Kant, Li is uniquely positioned to observe this trajectory and make it intelligible to today’s readers. The Chinese Aesthetic Tradition touches on all areas of artistic activity, including poetry, painting, calligraphy, architecture, and the "art of living." Right government, the ideal human being, and the path to spiritual transcendence all come under the provenance of aesthetic thought. According to Li this was the case from early Confucian explanations of poetry as that which gives expression to intent, through Zhuangzi’s artistic depictions of the ideal personality who discerns the natural way of things and lives according to it, to Chan Buddhist-inspired notions that nature and words can come together to yield insight and enlightenment. In this enduring and stimulating work, Li demonstrates conclusively the fundamental role of aesthetics in the development of the cultural and psychological structures in Chinese culture that define "humanity.
The book explores the coming-of-age fiction of two of the most critically acclaimed and frequently translated contemporary Chinese authors, Yu Hua and Su Tong; it is the first in-depth book-length treatise in English about the contemporary Chinese Bildungsroman. Although various individual contemporary Chinese novelists and individual works of Chinese fiction have previously been discussed under the rubric of the Bildungsroman, none of these efforts has approached the level of comprehensive and comparative analysis that this book brings to the genre and its social contexts in contemporary China. This book will pique the interests not only of scholars and students of Chinese and comparative literature, but also of historians and social scientists with an interest in the region.
Since the late 1970s China has undergone a great transformation, during which time the country has witnessed an outpouring of competing schools of thought. This book analyzes the major schools of political thought redefining China's transformation and the role Chinese thinkers are playing in the post-Mao era.
This volume explores the potentials and perspectives upon educational diplomacy, promoting a better mutual understanding on the European and the Chinese traditions and their visions for the future. Together an essay competition was held from January to September 2023, which concluded with a symposium on the 23 rd of September. During this project young students and young professionals from Europe and China were invited to submit their essays on the following topics: •How will exchange programs develop in the future? •How can curiosity and enthusiasm for the other culture be awaken and strengthened? •What potential does educational diplomacy have? •What is the new approach to international and global education? The submissions of this unique academic project are collected in this publication, encompassing a wide range of authors from different interdisciplinary and intercultural backgrounds , coming from E urope and China This project was run in collaboration between the Institute for Greater Europe and the European Guanxi. Both are youth led think tanks run by young academics and young professionals from all over Europe and beyond. Meanwhile, the Institute for Greater Europe puts a focus on the role of the European Idea on the European continent and beyond, European Guanxi searches to foster a mutual understanding between Europe and China.
An Authorlink Top Five Book of 2020 As a fearless poet and prolific essayist and critic, Liu Xiaobo became one of the most important dissident thinkers in the People's Republic of China. His nonviolent activism steered the nation's prodemocracy currents from Tiananmen Square to support for Tibet and beyond. Liu undertook perhaps his bravest act when he helped draft and gather support for Charter 08, a democratic vision for China that included free elections and the end of the Communist Party's monopoly on power. While imprisoned for "inciting subversion of state power," Liu won the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize. He was granted medical parole just weeks before dying of cancer in 2017. The Journey of Liu Xiaobo draws together essays and reflections on the "Nelson Mandela of China." The Dalai Lama, artist and activist Ai Weiwei, and a distinguished list of leading Chinese writers and intellectuals, including Zhang Zuhua, the main drafter of Charter 08, and Liu Xia, the wife of Liu Xiaobo, and noted China scholars, journalists, and political leaders from around the globe, including Yu Ying-shih, Perry Link, Andrew J. Nathan, Marco Rubio, and Chris Smith illuminate Liu's journey from his youth and student years, through his indispensable activism, and to his defiant last days. Many of the pieces were written immediately after Liu's death, adding to the emotions stirred by his loss. Original and powerful, The Journey of Liu Xiaobo combines memory with insightful analysis to evaluate Liu's impact on his era, nation, and the cause of human freedom.
How was the vast ancient Chinese empire brought together and effectively ruled? What are the historical origins of the resilience of contemporary China's political system? In The Constitution of Ancient China, Su Li, China's most influential legal theorist, examines the ways in which a series of fundamental institutions, rather than a supreme legal code upholding the laws of the land, evolved and coalesced into an effective constitution. Arguing that a constitution is an institutional response to a set of issues particular to a specific society, Su Li demonstrates how China unified a vast territory, diverse cultures, and elites from different backgrounds into a whole. He delves into such areas as uniform weights and measurements, the standardization of Chinese characters, and the building of the Great Wall. The book includes commentaries by four leading Chinese scholars in law, philosophy, and intellectual history--Wang Hui, Liu Han, Wu Fei, and Zhao Xiaoli—who share Su Li's ambition to explain the resilience of ancient China's political system but who contend that he overstates functionalist dimensions while downplaying the symbolic. Exploring why China has endured as one political entity for over two thousand years, The Constitution of Ancient China will be essential reading for anyone interested in understanding the institutional legacy of the Chinese empire.
This book aims to provide a context-informed, culture-sensitive picture of the reception of human rights in the early period of Chinese modernization. Following the delineation of the role of human rights in the democratic campaign, the anti-patriarchy movement and the cultural-psychological transformation, it inquires the conceptual grounds for the reception of human rights as well as features of the Sinicized understanding of human rights. It presents how the indigenous humanistic resources and the imported Western ideas jointly resulted in the ready acceptance of human rights, which was remarkably underpinned by a prevalent patriotic motivation. Observing the moral connotation in the Chinese interpretation of human rights, it discloses the impact of the traditional ‘ethical’ vision of the individual that subsumed the ‘right’ perspective, which both harbored the inclination of new forms of oppression of individual freedom, and provided a possible paradigm that synthesizes the good of the individual and of society. This constituted an inquiry of the relationship between Confucianism and human rights, which is still a theme of fierce debate in contemporary discussions.
This book is the first academic work on the philosophy of engineering in China that reflects two decades of research. It puts forward a new thesis, namely that the core maxim in the philosophy of engineering is “I create, therefore I am,” which is radically different from the Cartesian maxim: “I think, therefore I am.” In addition, the book offers the first detailed portrait of the roots and evolution of the philosophy of engineering in China. The book begins by discussing the triptych thesis of science, technology and engineering, which argues that there are a number of important distinctions between the three, e.g. scientific activities are chiefly based on discovery, while technological activities center on invention, and engineering activities focus on creation. Considering the latest developments in the philosophy of engineering, the author also analyzes engineering communities, engineering practice and a micro–meso–macro framework. In subsequent chapters, the author separately analyzes the three stages of engineering activities: planning, operating and using artifacts. In the closing chapter, two views on the philosophy of engineering (as a new subdiscipline of philosophy and as a philosophy in its own right) are briefly explained.
This book discusses contemporary Chinese philosophy. It is the is the outcome of the author's own twenty year-long studies on the relationship between modernization and Chinese culture from the perspective of cultural reconstruction and philosophical reflection. The book highlights the author's opinions and research outcomes. Part I Culture 1 1 The Basic Spirit of Ancient Chinese Culture I. Schools of thought on the basic spirit of ancient Chinese culture II. The cultural spirit with humanism as its core 2 Types and Characteristics of Chinese Culture I. The culture of ethical politics that seeks good governance II. Characteristics of the studies of ancient Chinese culture 3 Thinkers and Cultural Traditions I. Thinkers and connotations of cultural traditions II. The major cultural tradition promoted by thinkers III. The main approaches taken by the thinkers to shaping cultural traditions IV. The relationship between thinkers and the cultural traditions V. Absorbing historic resources and reconstructing the cultural traditions 4 The Study of Ancient Chinese Culture and the Spirit of the Times I. The connotation, content and scope of studies of ancient Chinese culture II. The essence of the debate about ancient Chinese culture is how to achieve China’s modernization III. The interaction between ancient Chinese culture and the spirit of the times 5 Ancient Chinese Culture and the Chinese Spiritual Homeland I. What is the spiritual homeland? Anient Chinese culture III. Constructing the Chinese spiritual homeland 6 Traditional Chinese Thought on Humanism I. The indomitable spirit of observing the Way II. The ideal of worshipping the mean and valuing harmony III. The consciousness of tolerance of "cultural China" IV. The conservative and innovative consciousness of evolution V. The pursuit of morality and justice VI. The function of traditional Chinese humanism 7 Issues of the Chinese Culture and the Chinese Spirit I. The connotation and function of cultural spirit and national spirit II. The relationship between Chinese culture and the Chinese spirit III. The innovative study of the spirit of Chinese culture IV. The human spirit, cultural spirit and national spirit 8 The Developmental Direction of Chinese Culture and the Self-improvement of National Spirit: The Efforts of Chinese Cultural Modernization from the Perspective of Three "Cultural Declarations" I. The main content and the value themes of the three "Cultural Declarations" II. The value of the modern neo-Confucian "Cultural Declaration" III. The similarities and differences of the three "Cultural Declarations" IV. The enlightenment of the three "Cultural Declarations" for developmental directions of Chinese culture 9 Cultural Criticism and the Value Reconstruction: A prospective look at the future of Chinese culture I. Cultural critique, values reconstruction and civilization renaissance II. The cultural criticism and value reconstruction in the course of modern history III. The modern spiritual direction of reconstructing the values 10 National Cultural Qualities and Rebuilding the Humanistic Spirit I. The quality of national culture is a diverse and open system II. The value orientations of the human spirit III. The relationship between the cultural qualities of the nation and the spirit of humanity IV. How to rebuild the human spirit V. The main contents of the new humanistic spirit vi Between Tradition and Modernity 11 Economic Globalization and the Construction of National Culture I. Economic globalization cannot counteract cultural nationality II. A rational view of nationalism III. Adhering to and enhancing the cultural nationality 12 Cultural Globalization and Cultural Construction in Contemporary China I. "Cultural globalization" is a factual judgment II. Cultural globalization is subordinate to cultural diversity Part II Philosophy 13 Confucian Cultural Tradition and National Cohesion I. The specifi c meaning of the traditional Confucian culture and its spiritual values II. The cultural connotation of Chinese national cohesion and modern values III. The relationship between tradition of Confucian culture and Chinese national cohesion 14 Confucian Culture and the Construction of a Contemporary Humanistic Spirit I. A rational pursuit of Confucian culture II. The practical needs of contemporary culture building III. The positive value of Confucian culture and the construction of contemporary humanistic spirit 15 Approaches to Promoting Economic Development through Confucian Culture I. Dual roles of Confucian culture in economic development II. A practical approach to promoting economic development through Confucian culture 16 Modernization and Marginalization of Confucianism I. The origin and connotation of modernization and marginalization of Confucianism II. On the modernization of Confucianism III. On the marginalization of Confucianism IV. The tension between the modernization and marginalization of Confucianism 17 Confucianism and Schools of Thoughts in Modern China. I. Tripartite situation of culture: Conservatives, reformists and revolutionaries II. Academic schools of thought: Marxism, Western schools and Neo-Confucianism III. Approaches to cultural reconstruction: Seeking gradual improvement through radical means IV. The contemporary fate of Confucianism 18 Formation of Ruling by Rites in the Han dynasty and its Ideological Features I. The embryonic stage of ruling by rites: The establishment of the country by the Emperor Gaozu of Han to the period of Emperors Wendi and Jingdi of the Han dynasty II. The establishment stage of ruling by rites: the periods from Emperor Wudi to Emperors Zhaodi and Xuandi of the Han dynasty III. The mature stages: During the period of Emperor Zhangdi of the Eastern Han dynasty IV. The ideological characteristics of the Han dynasty 19 The Political Philosophy of Dong Zhongshu I. The political theory of benevolent governance with morality given priority over penalty II. The theory of the historical cycle of three unities III. The theory of political order of "Heaven changeth not, likewise the Way changeth not" 20 Dong Zhongshu’s Thought on Heaven and Man and its Signifi cance in Cultural History I. The theory of mutual interaction between Heaven and humanity II. The theory of harmony between man and nature III. The theory of the unity of nature and mankind with the ruler in the center IV. The signifi cance of Dong Zhongshu’s theory of nature and mankind in cultural history 21 Dong Zhongshu’s Way of Thinking I. The integrated logical approach of analogy and alignment II. The holistic, intuitive and experiential way of thinking III. The reform principles of respecting Heaven and the practice of the ancient times viii Between Tradition and Modernity 22 The Cultural Interpretation of Dong Zhongshu’s ideal I. The great aspiration and noble ideal of the unity of the country II. The pursuit of harmony and fairness III. The strategic vision of long-term stability 23 The Confucian Orientation and Characteristics of the New School in Kang Youwei’s "On Dong Zhongshu’s Study of Spring-Autumn" I. The structure of On Dong Zhongshu’s Study of Spring-Autumn 330 II. The content and themes of "On Dong Zhongshu’s Study of Spring-Autumn" III. "On Dong Zhongshu’s Study of Spring-Autumn" and the Reformation Movement IV. The Guangdong fl avor of "On Dong Zhongshu’s Study of Spring-Autumn" 24 Challenges and Issues of Developing Contemporary Neo-Confucianism I. The dilemma between openness and conservatism II. The gap between the ambition of reviving Confucianism and the desolate reality of the Confucian school III. The confl ict between the traditional values and norms of "Back to Basics" and the modern concept of openness IV. The divorce between the spirit of criticism and the consciousness of self-refl ection V. The paradox between the intentions of modernizing Confucianism and the reality of its marginalization VI. The total lack of an ideal carrier of Confucian values and ideals 25 A Close Examination of the Study of Chinese Philosophy in the 20th Century and a Prospective Look at its Development in the New Century I. The fi rst half of the twentieth century II. The second half of the twentieth century III. Achievements and shortcomings in the century IV. A look into the new century The Postscript of the English version
Wolf Totem and the Post-Mao Utopian by Li Xiaojiang explores the controversial best-selling novel by the political economist Jiang Rong as an allegory of utopia through discussion of an encyclopaedic range of scholarship in the humanities and social sciences that offer thinking on topics introduced in the novel. In promoting the significance of utopian thought, Li stresses that the term for her study, “post-utopian criticism,” is not the same as anti-utopian criticism, but an analytical approach to criticism in order to addresses the shortcomings of postmodern and postcolonial theories applied to contemporary China, and to open up interpretive space for the specific historical experience of its people and its utopian ideals.
This book is divided into three main parts: an introduction to theories of culture, a section on Chinese culture, and one on cultural construction. The first part can be interpreted as an attempt to explore the meta-theoretical system of culture at the philosophical level. Based on the concept of “culture as ways of living,” the book further defines “culture” as “the preparation of people,” including the processes by which people adapt to local cultural and social customs. It stresses the subjectivity of culture, and the cultural rights and responsibilities of humankind. The second part takes on the subjective perspective of contemporary Chinese culture, interpreting it within the context of the historical situation of the Chinese people and nation, before engaging in a systematic reflection on several fundamental issues of Chinese culture. It closes by evaluating Chinese cultural practices and formulating a type of contemporary cultural self-identity. The book’s third part focuses on the interconnection between the revival of the Chinese nation and the modernization of Chinese society, analyzing the conditions and challenges for the three primary types of contemporary Chinese culture: material culture, political culture and spiritual culture. Lastly, the book puts forward suggestions concerning several of the critical problems facing a society in transition.
As a living and evolving tradition, Confucianism has been continuously defined and redefined in response to the changing political and social context of China's history. Extending this effort in reconstructing Confucianism, philosopher Chenyang Li critically analyzes and develops a series of core ideas that originated from classic Confucian texts and does so in the context of contemporary scholarly discourse. These core ideas include he (dynamic harmony), ren (care-centered virtue), li (ritual propriety), xiao (filial care), bie (gender equilibrium), you (friendship), shou (longevity), sheng (sagehood), ziyou (freedom), ping (equality), zheng (politics), and jiao (civic education). Li combines in-depth analysis of historical teachings with systematic deliberation on their contemporary significance, reflecting the current state of the field of research. Each chapter shows how seminal ideas in Confucianism were conceived and developed by ancient thinkers and how these ideas can be reconstructed and aligned in a sensible Confucian philosophy that responds to contemporary challenges. Over the course of its survey of Confucian philosophy, the book raises and investigates fundamental questions: How central is harmony as a Confucian value? Can Confucian sages be wrong? Is Xunzi's philosophy of filial care more progressive than Confucius' and hence more suitable in contemporary society? What is the best form of Confucian gender equality today? Is the model of "politics without politicians" a viable way for realizing the Confucian political ideal of the good society? Study questions are provided for each chapter to assist students to comprehend key points and develop their own views.
Revolutionary Stagecraft draws on a rich corpus of literary, historical, and technical materials to reveal a deep entanglement among technological modernization, political agendas, and the performing arts in modern China. This unique approach to Chinese theater history combines a close look at plays themselves, performance practices, technical theater details, and behind-the-scenes debates over “how to” make theater amid the political upheavals of China’s 20th century. The book begins at a pivotal moment in the 1920s—when Chinese theater artists began to import, use, and write about modern stage equipment—and ends in the 1980s when China's scientific and technological boom began. By examining iconic plays and performances from the perspective of the stage technologies involved, Tarryn Li-Min Chun provides a fresh perspective on their composition and staging. The chapters include stories on the challenges of creating imitation neon, rigging up a makeshift revolving stage, and representing a nuclear bomb detonating onstage. In thinking about theater through technicity, the author mines well-studied materials such as dramatic texts and performance reviews for hidden technical details and brings to light a number of previously untapped sources such as technical journals and manuals; set design renderings, lighting plots, and prop schematics; and stage technology how-to guides for amateur thespians. This approach focuses on material stage technologies, situating these objects equally in relation to their technical potential, their human use, and the social, political, economic, and cultural forces that influence them. In each of its case studies, Revolutionary Stagecraft reveals the complex and at times surprising ways in which Chinese theater artists and technicians of the 20th century envisioned and enacted their own revolutions through the materiality of the theater apparatus.
Fictions of Enlightenment is the first book to examine the fascinating and intricate relationship between Buddhism and the development of Chinese vernacular fiction. Qiancheng Li brings Buddhist models to bear on the vision, structure, and narrative form of three classics of late imperial literature—Journey to the West, Tower of Myriad Mirrors, and Dream of the Red Chamber—arguing that by fashioning their plots after the narratives of certain Mahāyāna sutras, the novelists transformed Buddhist concepts into narrative structures. Within the traditional Chinese novel Li even defines a new genre: the fiction of enlightenment.
Silk Road: The Study of Drama Culture is the translated edition of the Chinese academic book of the same title written by Professor LI Qiang from Shaanxi Normal University, China. The book breaks through the concept of regarding Han Drama as the center, yet elaborates the Silk Road drama as an inclusive culture and a prevailing literary art form in human civilization. Relying on his extensive experience and broad vision, the author conducts the thorough study by means of literature, artifacts and academic fieldwork. The book studies the drama culture of all ethnic groups from Asia, Europe and Africa and touches upon the cultural exchanges between China and its neighboring countries, between the East and the West. The carefully presented details in this book are aimed to explore all the related fields such as dramaturgy, philology, phonology, religion, history, geography, archeology, ethnology, and folklore between the East and the West from the perspective of cultural anthropology. The explanations in the book contribute to an in-depth study on the origins of the Silk Road and the drama culture along the Silk Road.
Situated within the framework of Confucian family-oriented ethics, this book explores the issue of familial partiality and specifically discusses whether it is morally praiseworthy to love one’s family partially. In reviewing the tension between familial partiality and egalitarian impartiality from different perspectives while also drawing on binary metrics to understand the issue – that is, the weak and strong sense of familial partiality in Confucian moral theory – the author carefully discusses the efficacy of three major arguments to justify moral partiality. It is concluded that the tree argument fails to justify moral partiality in Confucianism, the evolutionary argument only justifies moral partiality in the weak sense that we should devote more resources to our family, and the care argument fails to justify moral partiality in the strong sense that family takes priority in any case even at the expense of the principle of justice. Seeking to address the quandary, the author advances an alternative argument based on Thomas Aquinas’ theory of love to interpret Confucian view of partial relationships, holding that partial treatment is assumed in partial relationships. The title will appeal to scholars and students interested in Confucianism, Chinese philosophy, moral philosophy, and comparative philosophy.
The past becomes readable when we can tell stories and make arguments about it. When we can tell more than one story or make divergent arguments, the readability of the past then becomes an issue. Therein lies the beginning of history, the sense of inquiry that heightens our awareness of interpretation. How do interpretive structures develop and disintegrate? What are the possibilities and limits of historical knowledge? This book explores these issues through a study of the Zuozhuan, a foundational text in the Chinese tradition, whose rhetorical and analytical self-consciousness reveals much about the contending ways of thought unfolding during the period of the text’s formation (ca. 4th c. B.C.E.). But in what sense is this vast collection of narratives and speeches covering the period from 722 to 468 B.C.E. “historical”? If one can speak of an emergent sense of history in this text, Wai-yee Li argues, it lies precisely at the intersection of varying conceptions of interpretation and rhetoric brought to bear on the past, within a larger context of competing solutions to the instability and disintegration represented through the events of the 255 years covered by the Zuozhuan. Even as its accounts of proliferating disorder and disintegration challenge the boundaries of readability, the deliberations on the rules of reading in the Zuozhuan probe the dimensions of historical self-consciousness.
Referencing more than 40 ancient works as well as 70 books and papers of contemporary scholars, this book opens up the civilization, society, culture and communication of the Tang Dynasty. The Tang period represented unprecedented prosperity in the ancient world. Combining the socio-cultural background of ancient China and academic achievements of modern times, this book presents an intensive and in-depth exploration of the communicative organisations, methods and ideas of that period. The book looks at Tang methods of communication, from the postal delivery system and first newspaper to military communication in times of peace and war. It also considers questions of literature, poetry and public space as well as the impact of folk culture and communication on the Tang Dynasty, and examines the intellectual atmosphere of the time and debates surrounding freedom of speech and thought, positioning the Tang Dynasty as the end of the classic world and the beginning of modern society.
Chronicles the history of Beijing from its earliest days to the twenty-first century, discussing how economic growth as well as preparations for the 2008 Olympics have affected the city.
China's momentous socioeconomic transformation is not taking place in an intellectual vacuum: Chinese scholars and public intellectuals are actively engaged in fervent discussions about the country's domestic and foreign policies, demographic constraints, and ever-growing integration into the world community. This book focuses on China's major think tanks where policies are initiated, and on a few prominent thinkers who influence the way in which elites and the general public understand and deal with the various issues confronting the country.The book examines a number of factors contributing to the rapid rise of Chinese think tanks in the reform era. These include the leadership's call for 'scientific decision-making,' the need for specialized expertise in economics and finance as China becomes an economic powerhouse, the demand for opinion leaders in the wake of a telecommunication revolution driven by social media, the accumulation of human and financial capital, and the increasing utility of the 'revolving door' nature of think tanks.It has been widely noted that think tanks and policy advisors have played an important role in influencing the strategic thinking of the top leadership, including the formation of ideas such as the 'Three Represents,' 'China's peaceful rise,' 'One Belt, One Road,' and the founding of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB). In 2014, President Xi Jinping made think tank development a national strategy, and he claimed that 'building a new type of think tank with Chinese characteristics is an important and pressing mission.'Though the media outside China has often reported on this important development, it has all but escaped rigorous scholarly scrutiny. This book will categorize Chinese think tanks by their various forms, such as government agencies, university-based think tanks, private think tanks, business research centers or consultancies, and civil society groups. It will not only analyze the problems and challenges in China's think tank development, but also reveal the power of ideas.
Harmony is a concept essential to Confucianism and to the way of life of past and present people in East Asia. Integrating methods of textual exegesis, historical investigation, comparative analysis, and philosophical argumentation, this book presents a comprehensive treatment of the Confucian philosophy of harmony. The book traces the roots of the concept to antiquity, examines its subsequent development, and explicates its theoretical and practical significance for the contemporary world. It argues that, contrary to a common view in the West, Confucian harmony is not mere agreement but has to be achieved and maintained with creative tension. Under the influence of a Weberian reading of Confucianism as "adjustment" to a world with an underlying fixed cosmic order, Confucian harmony has been systematically misinterpreted in the West as presupposing an invariable grand scheme of things that pre-exists in the world to which humanity has to conform. The book shows that Confucian harmony is a dynamic, generative process, which seeks to balance and reconcile differences and conflicts through creativity. Illuminating one of the most important concepts in Chinese philosophy and intellectual history, this book is of interest to students of Chinese studies, history and philosophy in general and eastern philosophy in particular.
This book demonstrates that civil-military relations have evolved beyond symbiosis to quasi-institutionalization in post-Deng Xiaoping China. As the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) is a Leninist party-army, it is commonly assumed that the relationship between the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the PLA is symbiotic and institutional boundaries based on a clear functional division of labor are absent between the two. This symbiosis suggests that the primary role of the PLA is in China’s domestic politics; it is to participate in intra-CCP leadership power struggle and in defending the CCP regime against popular rebellions from within Chinese society. By analyzing major changes in the functions of the PLA political commissar system, the extent of the PLA involvement in the power struggle of the CCP leadership, and the circulation of elites across civil-military institutional boundaries, this book offers a new theoretical explanation of civil-military relations in China. It also discusses the implications of the findings for China’s domestic politics and foreign policy.
This book investigates a new interactive data visualisation concept that employs traditional Chinese aesthetics as a basis for exploring contemporary digital technological contexts. It outlines the aesthetic approach, which draws on non-Western aesthetic concepts, specifically the Yijing and Taoist cosmological principles, and discusses the development of data-based digital practices within a theoretical framework that combines traditional Taoist ideas with the digital humanities. The book also offers a critique of the Western aesthetics underpinning data visualisation, in particular the Kantian sublime, which prioritises the experience of power over the natural world viewed at a distance. Taoist philosophy, in contrast, highlights the integration of the surface of the body and the surface of nature as a Taoist body, rather than promoting an opposition of mind and body. The book then explores the transformational potential between the human body and technology, particularly in creating an aesthetic approach spanning traditional Chinese aesthetics and gesture-based technology. Representing a valuable contribution to the digital humanities, the book helps readers understand data-based artistic practices, while also bringing the ideas of traditional Chinese aesthetics to Western audiences. In addition, it will be of interest to practitioners in the fields of digital art and data visualisation seeking new models.
Life itself has long gone unnoticed in Confucian texts since the Qin and Han dynasties, which is similar to the forgetting of Being, per se, in the Western philosophy after the Axial Period, according to Heidegger. Today, there is a philosophical mission to return life to Confucianism, restoring and reconstructing Confucianism in the perspective of a comparison between Confucianism and Husserl's Phenomenology. The author reduces the features of life to the essence of a thing but returns to life as the essence of Being. The author rejects the idea of post-philosophy in order to reconstruct the metaphysical and the post-metaphysical gradations of Confucianism. These gradations are made along three strata in the life of human beings-no-being of anything (a life comprehension), metaphysical thinghood (the absolute Being), and post-metaphysical things (the relative beings). In this way we have a full understanding of the idea of Confucianism.
This book examines the rising global prominence of China’s art market throughout the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. To understand the far-reaching impact of Chinese art on global consumption, this book traces the shift from regional markets to global markets. It asks how the Chinese art market re-emerged from its politicized past, innovated within the private economy boom, remained resilient despite the global financial crisis, and flourished on the global stage despite the COVID-19 pandemic. Ultimately, it argues that cultural entrepreneurship enabled Chinese art professionals to reinvent their space and to participate in the global artworld.
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