이 글은 중국공산당의 주도 아래 기획되고 있는 ‘유교중국’의 재구축과정에서 지식인의 역할에 주목한다. 특히 유교의 현재적 재구성에서 국가의 입장과 달리 정치적인 것을 넘어설 가능성에 관심이 있다. 현재 유교의 ‘통치이념화’의 진행 속도는 교과과정 안에 유교경전이 재진입하는 제도 변화의 단계에까지 와 있다. 1905년 과거제가 폐지되면서 중국에서 유교는 떠도는 유혼(遊魂)이 되었다. 중국의 근현대 100년은 자기부정의 역사였다. 중국공산당은 유교를 부정하면서 계급정당으로 출발한 당이다. 하지만 2000년대에 진입하면서 중국공산당은 어느 특정 계급의 정당이 아닌 ‘국민의 정당’으로 성격변화를 시도하기 시작했다. 혁명당이 아닌 집권당의 정체성을 강화해온 중국공산당으로서는 언제까지나 반전통을 고수할 (...) 수 없다. 이제 공산당은 자기 문명과의 관계를 재설정해야 한다. 더구나 경제성장과 함께 마르크스주의는 더 이상 사회통합이데올로기로서의 기능을 상실했다. 민족문화이기 때문에 부정되었던 유교는 이제 같은 이유로 새로운 사회통합 이데올로기의 역할을 떠맡아야 한다. 하지만 이처럼 유교가 화려하게 부활하면서 대륙의 신유학 담론을 주도하는 지식인의 책임과 역할에 대한 재조정 또한 필요하다. 첫째, 유교의 통치이념화의 조건으로서 20세기의 역사경험을 어떻게 수용하고 해석할 것인가. 둘째, 20세기가 만들어놓은 문화적 배경인 평등주의와 개인화, 다원화 경향을 유교의 재해석에 어떻게 활용할 것인가. 최소한 이러한 두 요소가 함축된 유학이어야 ‘비판담론으로서의 유학’, 즉 ‘지속가능한 유학’으로 거듭날 가능성이 존재한다. 멀리는 전통의 재현을 유념하되, 가까이는 20세기의 역사적, 문화적 배경이라는 맥락을 고려하면서 유교를 대담하게 재해석할 때 세계와 아시아가 공감할 수 있는 유학이 새로이 창조될 수 있을 것이다. (shrink)

One side of this paper is devoted to showing that the Golden Rule, understood as standing for universal love, is centrally characteristic of Confucianism properly understood, rather than graded, familial love. In this respect Confucianism and Christianity are similar. The other side of this paper is devoted to arguing contra 18 centuries of commentators that the negative sentential formulation of the Golden Rule as found in Confucius cannot be converted to an affirmative sentential formulation (as is found in (...) Christianity) without a change in its meaning. In this respect Confucianism and Christianity are different. (shrink)

This paper argues Confucianism is a compelling managerial ethic for several reasons: 1) Confucianism is compatible with accepted managerial practices. 2) It requires individuals and organizations to make a positive contribution to society. 3) Recognizes hierarchy as an important organizational principle and demands managerial moral leadership. 4) The Confucian "golden Rule" and virtues provide a moral basis for the hierarchical and cooperative relationships critical to organizational success. The paper applies Confucianism to the H. B. Fuller in Honduras: (...) Street Children and Substance Abuse case. (shrink)

While Confucian ideals continue to inspire thinkers and political actors, discussions of concrete Confucian practices and institutions appropriate for the modern era have been conspicuously absent from the literature thus far. This volume represents the most cutting edge effort to spell out in meticulous detail the relevance of Confucianism for the contemporary world. The contributors to this book - internationally renowned philosophers, lawyers, historians, and social scientists - argue for feasible and desirable Confucian policies and institutions as they attempt (...) to draw out the political, economic, and legal implications of Confucianism for the modern world. The book is divided in three parts that correspond to the basic hallmarks of modernity as a social and political system - democracy, capitalism, and the rule of law. (shrink)

Little is known about the Korean Peninsula before 12 th century, due to which potentially biased assessments of its social, cultural, and political history exist. This study attempted to unearth the history of the Korean Peninsula since the late 10th century through the Buddhist inscriptions. These inscriptions unveil the authentic social environment, religious beliefs, and political ecology of late Silla and delve into the political motives and life philosophies of Silla scholars who studied the Tang Dynasty, especially their approach of (...) 'interpreting Buddhism through Confucianism'. Based on empirical research grounded in documentary evidence, combined with literary-historical methods, this study examined the inscriptions of two great Silla scholars Choi Chi-Won and Choi Eun-Wee. Their works predominantly feature Confucian thought within Buddhist narratives. Politically, they used Confucian principles as the foundation for governance, interpreting them through Buddhist concepts to enlighten the masses and strengthen dynastic rule. Ideologically, while Choi Chi-Won fully implemented Confucian logic, Choi Eun-Wee demonstrated a stronger Buddhist inclination. This research enriches the understanding of the history, culture, and society of the Korean Peninsula, highlighting the significant role of blending Confucian and Buddhist elements in shaping its social and political structures. (shrink)

Confucian political philosophy has recently emerged as a vibrant area of thought both in China and around the globe. This book provides an accessible introduction to the main perspectives and topics being debated today, and shows why Progressive Confucianism is a particularly promising approach. Students of political theory or contemporary politics will learn that far from being confined to a museum, contemporary Confucianism is both responding to current challenges and offering insights from which we can all learn. The (...) Progressive Confucianism defended here takes key ideas of the twentieth-century Confucian philosopher Mou Zongsan as its point of departure for exploring issues like political authority and legitimacy, the rule of law, human rights, civility, and social justice. The result is anti-authoritarian without abandoning the ideas of virtue and harmony; it preserves the key values Confucians find in ritual and hierarchy without giving in to oppression or domination. A central goal of the book is to present Progressive Confucianism in such a way as to make its insights manifest to non-Confucians, be they philosophers or simply citizens interested in the potential contributions of Chinese thinking to our emerging, shared world. (shrink)

This is a “metacritical” engagement from a Confucian perspective with the legacy of Kantian ethics. The first and longest part of this essay deals with the European West and Kant, especially the categorical imperative. The second part hearkens back to East Asian antiquity, especially Ancient China, as it briefly explores Kongzi’s Golden Rule and Mengzi’s compassion.

This paper explores organ donation through the perspective of Reconstructionist Confucianism. I argue that for organ donation in China to be morally permissible, public policy must conform to the norms of Confucian benevolence. Reconstructionist Confucianism appreciates benevolence as an objectively important feature of morality deeply connected to moral rules governing propriety, integrity, righteousness, and human freedom. Here, benevolence involves sincere affection for another as an intrinsic good, rather than as a means to achieve other purposes. It requires developing (...) self-restraint and proper respect for others. As I argue, family-based consent is essential for ensuring that organ donation conforms to such an understanding of benevolence and is, thereby, compatible with Confucian culture. Consequently, legislation in China should solidify family-based consent for organ donation to consolidate a benevolent family environment as the basis of morality, law, and social existence. (shrink)

Why should I take care of my aging parents? How far will morality require me to sacrifice for this cause? I will study these questions from the perspectives of Confucianism and rule‐consequentialism. Confucians believe that the continuity of families and the interactions between members of different generations can enhance the integrity of society in the long run. However, since Confucianism may impose extreme demands on its followers, this theory may be problematic. In this paper, I argue that despite (...) its demands, the Confucian doctrines are defensible and are worth upholding. To explain my view, I draw upon rule‐consequentialism and explain how the rule‐consequentialist analysis complements and enhances the Confucian claims. I believe that the consequentialist conception of Confucianism can provide a useful resource for responding to the moral challenge of population aging in the current state of the world. (shrink)

This ambitious book examines the notion of legal transparency from a unique cultural and historical perspective. Drawing from their combined academic and practical experience with both Chinese and Western legal traditions, authors John Head and Xing Lijuan explore how an intense debate — pitting legal transparency against legal opaqueness — unfolded in dynastic Chinese law, which began in the dark mists of history and ended formally just over a hundred years ago. They rely on a wide range of both Western (...) and Chinese sources to explain how that great debate was resolved in the early Han Dynasty (around the third century BCE) in a way that molded Chinese law into a sophisticated legal system that for roughly two millennia balanced definitiveness with vagueness, predictability with flexibility, and egalitarianism with privilege — and that reflected cultural values still resonating in China today. Legal Transparency in Dynastic China presents a clear narrative that assumes no prior expertise in Chinese law or history, and it caters to readers interested in issues of good governance, comparative studies, China, history, and law. The book begins by defining “legal transparency” and explaining where it fits into the larger context of the transparency-in-government movement that has gained such momentum in recent years, especially at the urging of Western powers. Then the book explains the fundamentally different values espoused by early Confucianists, for whom society is best governed not through written law but through the exemplary behavior of a highly educated, virtuous, and enlightened elite. After tracing the political and ideological challenges that the Confucianists faced from the Legalists, Head and Xing examine the compromise that resulted in the so-called “Confucianization of the Law” around 200 BCE. They then show how that alloy of competing ideologies characterized Chinese dynastic law for many centuries, resulting in what some would consider the most enduring and effective legal system in human history. (shrink)

A major obstacle to the political revival of Confucianism has been its tension with the rule of law. Systemic features of Confucianism such as social hierarchy (and the corresponding social inequal...

한국사회의 불신지수를 반영하듯, 최근 ‘소통’에 대한 논의가 활발하고, 소통을 위해서는 합리성과 사실을 존중하는 공론의 장을 형성해가야 한다는 논의가 공감을 얻고 있다. 이 글에서는 진정한 사회적 소통을 위해 합리적 토론문화의 형성 이전에 전제되어야 할 것이 타인에 대한 ‘공감’임을 주장하고자 한다. 이 글에서는 전통 유학의 사회 및 정치사상은 타인에 대한 공감을 기저로 하는 것임을 지적하고, 역의 감응론이 그 이론적 토대임을 논한다. 역의 감응론은 ‘이 세계를 구성하는 원리인 감응을 통하여 인간사회와 우주적 생명세계에 형통함을 가져오려는’ 목적을 지닌다. ‘한 번 음이 되고 한 번 양이 (...) 되는’ 음양의 율동은 자연세계와 인간사회를 관통하여 부단히 생생(生生)작용을 거듭해 가며, 『주역』에서는 이러한 생생작용을 인(仁)의 가치로 수렴한다. 생명살림의 의미로서 ‘인’은 대대관계를 이루는 두 주체의 상호작용을 통해 이루어진다. 유학적 사회관계를 대표하는 오륜(五倫)은 대타자적 균형감각을 핵심으로 한다. 오륜에서 ‘부모는 자애롭고, 자식은 효성스럽다’고 하여 쌍방향 윤리를 제시하는 것은 감응 이론의 확장이라고 해석할 수 있다. 그리고 이 감응과 소통의 책임은 기본적으로 윗자리의 지도자에게 있다. 군위신강(君爲臣綱), 부위자강(父爲子綱), 부위부강(夫爲婦綱)이라는 삼강(三綱)의 윤리에서 권력관계의 우월성을 읽을 수도 있지만 동시에 윗자리에 처한 사람의 책임과 소임에 대한 강조를 읽을 수 있다. “남의 슬픔과 고통을 차마 외면하지 못하는 정치[不忍人之政]”를 설파한 맹자의 측은지심(惻隱之心)의 정치, 더 나아가 ‘여민동락(與民同樂)’의 정치는 관계적 사유를 중시하는 역의 감응론이 정치적 원리로 발현된 형태로 볼 수 있다. 경연, 상소제도 등과 같이 조선의 지식인들이 추구했던 언로개방의 소통정치 또한 감응론에 입각한 정치 방법론이라 하겠다. 오늘날 한국정치현실에서 유학의 공감의 정치원리와 그 기초로서 역의 감응론은 새롭게 연구할 시의성이 있다. (shrink)

Dialogue is a seminal concept within the work of the Brazilian adult education theorist, Paulo Freire, and the Russian literary critic and philosopher, Mikhail Bakhtin. While there are commonalities in their understanding of dialogue, they differ in their treatment of dialectic. This paper addresses commonalities and dissonances within a Bakhtin-Freire dialogue on the notions of dialogue and dialectic. It then teases out some of the implications for education theory and practice in relation to two South African contexts of learning that (...) facilitate the access to education of disadvantaged groups, one in higher education and the other in early childhood education. (shrink)

The information explosion and digital modes of learning often combine to inform the quest for the best ways of transforming information in digital form for pedagogical purposes. This quest has become more urgent and pervasive with the ‘turn’ to online learning in the context of COVID-19. This can result in linear, asynchronous, transmission-based modes of teaching and learning which commodify, package and deliver knowledge for individual ‘customers’. The primary concerns in such models are often technical and economic – technology as (...) a cost-effective ‘solution’ to educational challenges. In this paper I argue for the importance of dialogic learning space in teaching and learning by means of Information and Communication Technologies, whether in the form of fully online learning, blended learning or face-to-face encounters using ICT affordances. Although the 20th Century theorists Mikhail Bakhtin (1895–1975) and Hans-Georg Gadamer (1900–2002) produced their seminal works before the advent of ICTs, they were both concerned with the quality and authenticity of human engagement with texts and with other persons and contexts. Besides a shared interest in dialogue as an ontological feature of human life and being, they both used spatiotemporal concepts for understanding and interpreting texts. The article draws on Gadamer’s notions of dialogue and horizon, and Bakhtin’s notions of dialogue and chronotope, to conceptualize dialogic possibilities for online education. Its purpose is to provide a framework, grounded in Bakhtin’s and Gadamer’s ideas, for a dialogic approach to online teaching and learning in higher education. (shrink)

The intellectual legacy of Confucianism has loomed large in efforts to understand China's past, present, and future. While Confucian ethics has been thoroughly explored, the question remains: what exactly is Confucian political thought? Classical Confucian Political Thought returns to the classical texts of the Confucian tradition to answer this vital question. Showing how Confucian ethics and politics diverge, Loubna El Amine argues that Confucian political thought is not a direct application of Confucian moral philosophy. Instead, contrary to the conventional (...) view that Confucian rule aims to instill virtue in all members of society, El Amine demonstrates that its main aim is to promote political order. El Amine analyzes key aspects of the Confucian political vision, including the relationship between the ruler and the people, the typology of rulers, and the role of ministers and government officials. She also looks at Confucianism’s account of the mechanisms through which society is to be regulated, from welfare policies to rituals. She explains that the Confucian conception of the political leaves space open for the rule of those who are not virtuous if these rulers establish and maintain political order. She also contends that Confucians defend the duty to take part in government based on the benefits that such participation can bring to society. Classical Confucian Political Thought brings a new understanding to Confucian political theory by illustrating that it is not chiefly idealistic and centered on virtue, but rather realistic and driven by political concerns. (shrink)

Mozi’s 墨子 doctrine of impartial care has been interpreted predominantly through the lens of Mengzi 孟子, that is, as “love without distinctions” versus “love with distinctions.” However, I think Mengzi saw only half of the picture, as his focus was exclusively on the difference between Confucianism and Mohism in regard to the scope, intensity, and sequence of love. In this essay, I argue that Mozi’s impartial care is also characteristically different in kind from the Confucian notion of humaneness. My (...) analysis and comparison of their usage of the word ai 愛 shows that Mozi’s ai is material-oriented care, while the Confucian ai is emotion-oriented care. I further argue that Mozi had this particular understanding of care largely because he held a quite negative view of human emotions. For him, human emotions are unreliable and harmful for the practice of care. (shrink)

This article examines the relationship between online dispute resolution (ODR) and trust. We discuss what trust is, why trust is important, and how trust develops. Our claim is that efforts to implement online dispute resolution on a site or service in a manner that promotes trust need to consider ODR as just one tool in a broader toolbox of trust-building tools and techniques. These techniques are amongst others marketing, education, trust seals, and transparency. By evaluating ODR in its proper context (...) as one component of a larger trust strategy, we can more accurately set expectations for its results and position our projects for success. (shrink)

Karen Stohr’s book On Manners argues persuasively that rules of etiquette, though conventional, play an essential moral role, because they “serve as vehicles through which we express important moral values like respect and consideration for the needs, ideas, and opinions of others”. Stohr frequently invokes Kantian concepts and principles in order to make her point. In Part 2 of this essay, I shall argue that the significance of etiquette is better understood using a virtue ethics framework, like that of (...) class='Hi'>Confucianism, rather than the language of Kantianism. Within the Chinese tradition, Daoists have frequently been critics of Confucian ritualism. Consequently, in Part 3, I shall consider some possible Daoist critiques of Stohr’s work. (shrink)

Neo-Confucianism is a philosophically sophisticated tradition weaving classical Confucianism together with themes from Buddhism and Daoism. It began in China around the eleventh century CE, played a leading role in East Asian cultures over the last millennium, and has had a profound influence on modern Chinese society. -/- Based on the latest scholarship but presented in accessible language, Neo-Confucianism: A Philosophical Introduction is organized around themes that are central in Neo-Confucian philosophy, including the structure of the cosmos, (...) human nature, ways of knowing, personal cultivation, and approaches to governance. The authors thus accomplish two things at once: they present the Neo-Confucians in their own, distinctive terms; and they enable contemporary readers to grasp what is at stake in the great Neo-Confucian debates. (shrink)

Where does Neo-Confucianismâe"a movement that from the twelfth to the seventeenth centuries profoundly influenced the way people understood the world and responded to itâe"fit into our story of Chinaâe(tm)s history? This interpretive, at times polemical, inquiry into the Neo-Confucian engagement with the literati as the social and political elite, local society, and the imperial state during the Song, Yuan, and Ming dynasties is also a reflection on the role of the middle period in Chinaâe(tm)s history. The book argues that as (...) Neo-Confucians put their philosophy of learning into practice in local society, they justified a new social ideal in which society at the local level was led by the literati with state recognition and support. The later imperial order, in which the state accepted local elite leadership as necessary to its own existence, survived even after Neo-Confucianism lost its hold on the center of intellectual culture in the seventeenth century but continued as the foundation of local education. It is the contention of this book that Neo-Confucianism made that order possible. (shrink)

Why Be Moral? Learning from the Neo-Confucian Cheng Brothers by Yong Huang is a work of comparative philosophy with an original approach. It is a careful and learned study of two important philosophers in Chinese philosophy, but at the same time it is an interesting and stimulating alternative introduction to fundamental philosophical problems.Huang explains: "My interest is not in exploring the similarities and differences between Confucianism and virtue ethics in the West …, but in seeking the possible contributions (...) class='Hi'>Confucianism can make to contemporary virtue ethics". I think Huang is able to deliver very well the goods he has set out to deliver. The topics discussed are all living issues in contemporary... (shrink)

This paper argues that debates between the Confucians and Mohists in Classical China anticipate contemporary discussions in political philosophy. Specifically, their debates about our responsibilities to other people are akin to debates between Rawlsans, Cosmopolitans, and Utilitarians about the content of our political obligations to other people, and about the proper scope of application of norms of justice.

One of the most high-profile debates in Chinese philosophy concerns the compatibility of human and individual rights with basic Confucian doctrines and practices. Defenders of the incompatibilist view argue that rights are inconsistent with Confucianism because rights are (necessarily) role-independent obligations and entitlements, whereas Confucians think that all obligations and entitlements are role-dependent. Two other arguments have to do with the practice of claiming one's own rights, holding (a) that claiming one's rights undercuts family-like community bonds and (b) that (...) giving everyone license to claim her own rights is incompatible with certain hierarchical social structures that Confucians value. In this essay, I show that these arguments are too crudely formulated to identify the real points of contention with rights compatibilism, and then develop versions of two of the arguments which, when properly qualified, pose a more serious challenge for those who think rights and a license to claim one's own rights are consistent with core Confucian views. (shrink)

This essay explores the interrelation of skills and virtues. I first trace one line of analysis from Aristotle to Alasdair MacIntyre, which argues that there is a categorical difference between skills and virtues, in their ends and intrinsic character. This familiar distinction is fine in certain respects but still importantly misleading. Virtue in general, and also some particular virtues such as ritual propriety and practical wisdom, are not just exercised in practical contexts, but are in fact partially constituted by the (...) mastery of certain skills. This has implications for moral psychology, specifically how we might understand the acquisition of virtue, as well as its very nature. To try to make this claim plausible I analyze two case studies from early Confucianism: treatment of ritual propriety as a cardinal virtue, and Mencius's less carefully integrated treatment of excellence at moral discernment. I conclude by revisiting the question of the relations between skill and virtue, and exploring a few of the difficulties implied by my account of early Confucian ethics. (shrink)

"China has 'arrived,' and Ronnie Littlejohn helps us know this antique culture better. In his entirely accessible introduction, Littlejohn has done the academy the timely service of resourcing the best contemporary research in sinology to tell the compelling story of a living Confucianism as it has meandered through the dynasties to flow down to our present time." -- Roger T. Ames, Professor of Philosophy, University of Hawai’i "Although basically intended as an introductory text for undergraduates, this book is equally (...) a very useful one for everyone with a serious interest in things sinological to have on their bookshelves. Littlejohn has surveyed well the modern Western scholarship on the manifold dimensions of the Confucian persuasion from its earliest beginnings to the present, and proffers it to the reader in a clearly written and commendably balanced narrative, complete with notes, references, and a working bibliography for further studies of this ancient but still vibrant philosophical and religious tradition we know as 'Confucianism'." —Henry Rosemont, Jr, George B & Wilma Reeves Distinguished Professor of the Liberal Arts Emeritus, St Mary’s College of Maryland, and Visiting Professor of Religious Studies, Brown University . (shrink)

This essay studies equality and inequality in Confucianism. By studying Confucius, Mencius, Xunzi, and other classic thinkers, I argue that Confucian equality is manifested in two forms. Numerical equality is founded in the Mencian belief that every person is born with the same moral potential and the Xunzian notion that all people have the same xing and the same potential for moral cultivation. It is also manifested in the form of role-based equality. Proportional equality, however, is the main notion (...) of equality in Confucian philosophy. Proportional equality is realized in moral, economic, and political realms. On the basis of these notions of Confucian equality, I propose two Confucian political principles for contemporary society. The first is the inclusive principle of general election by citizenry, and the second is the exclusive principle of qualification for public offices. (shrink)

In this article we focus on three key precepts shared by Confucianism and the African ethic of Ubuntu: the central value of community, the desirability of ethical partiality, and the idea that we tend to become morally better as we grow older. For each of these broad similarities, there are key differences underlying them, and we discuss those as well as speculate about the reasons for them. Our aim is not to take sides, but we do suggest ways that (...) Ubuntu and Confucianism might have something to learn from each other and perhaps come closer. We hope that our preliminary reflections can inspire further debate and thinking on a theme – dialogues between long-standing and large-scale non-Western traditions – that is bound to increase in importance as non-Western societies play a greater role in the global system and as the search continues for a 'global ethic'. (shrink)