1,721,023 research outputs found
Chinese and Indian Ways of Thinking in Early Modern European Philosophy. The Reception and the Exclusion
No full textWhy were Chinese and Indian ways of thinking excluded from European philosophy in early modern times? This is a study of what happened to the European understanding of China and India between the late 16th century and the first half of the 18th century.
Investigating the description of these two Asian civilizations during a century and a half of histories of philosophy, this book accounts for the change of historiographical paradigms, from Neoplatonic philosophia perennis and Spinozistic atheism to German Eclecticism. Uncovering the reasons for inserting or excluding Chinese and Indian ways of thinking within the field of Philosophy in early modern times, it reveals the origin of the Eurocentric understanding of Philosophy as a Greek-European prerogative.
By highlighting how this narrowing and exclusion of non-Western ways of thought was a result of conviction of superiority and religious prejudice, this book provides a new way of thinking about the place of Asian traditions among World philosophies
Mou Zongsan and Martin Heidegger: Reopening a Debate on Ontology and Ethics
No full textIn this paper I investigate differences and similarities in the
definitions of human being and human essence as proposed by two of the most
influential thinkers of 20th-century world philosophy, namely Mou Zongsan and
Martin Heidegger. I first examine a number of interpretations put forth by
scholars that assess the philosophical compatibility of the thought of the two
philosophers. Each of these assessments tend to agree that they are incompatible
with each other based on what they perceive as an absolute distance between
Mou’s and Heidegger’s ways of thinking. Although these studies are pioneering
and show an in-depth understanding of Mou’s thought, none demonstrate a
correct understanding of Heidegger’s philosophy. Therefore, I will attempt to
demonstrate that, despite their differences, the ontological and ethical theses of
Mou and Heidegger have several striking points of contact. I will also put forth
the claim that Heidegger’s post-turn philosophy is more compatible with Mou’s
philosophy than Kant’s system
Fengshui. A Moral Technique-Art (jiyi 技藝) for Contemporary Environmental Awareness
Full text linkIn this article, we will define fengshui as a contemporary hybrid way of thinking with a long history that unfolds from ancient Chinese philosophy and the art of ruling, through Song Neo-Confucianism, to modern Western ecologic interpretations. We will particu-larly highlight the cosmological and moral ratio of this art in the philosophical thought of Zhu Xi and Cai Yuanding, which we will propose as the possible source of a reno-vated moral fengshui. After this historical framework, we will present the process of the scientifization of fengshui as a building technology. Therefore, we will put into question this enframing of fengshui as a modern technology through both Heidegger's lens and Li Zehou's definition of "proper measure" (du (sic)). Following this hermeneutical analysis, we will propose jiyi (sic) (technique-art) as the most suitable definition of fengshui and we will present the ethical dimension behind it (i.e., filial piety towards nature). In the conclusions, we will argue that fengshui is not, properly speaking, an environmental phi-losophy or an ecologism, since these two concepts are too rooted in Western philosophi-cal culture (i.e., transcendence and the separateness of humans and nature). However, we are convinced that fengshui could fruitfully contribute to a deeper ecological awareness with a Chinese character on both the local and global scales
Mou Zongsan: la traduzione delle Diciannove Lezioni e il circolo ermeneutico
Full text linkLa presente discussione offre il primo inquadramento in lingua italiana del pensiero del filosofo cinese Mou Zongsan. Si presenta la prima traduzione in inglese delle sue rinomate "Diciannove lezioni", così come l'impatto e la rilevanza di tale opera. In particolare, la discussione si concentra sul concetto di universale concreto che Mou attribuisce al pensiero cinese, in opposizione all'universale astratto di cui il pensiero occidentale sarebbe foriero
Discording Enlightenments on China: Pierre Bayle's Skepticism vs Johan Jacob Brucker's Exoticism
No full textIt is usually acknowledged that the core contribution of the Enlightenment is primarily twofold: the first being introduction of reason and science as judgmental principles, and the belief in the future progress of humankind as a shared destiny for humanity as the second. For most Enlightenment thinkers, the only reliable instrument for taking personal and collective decisions was the human reason, taken in the form of critical thinking, rational analysis, or the power of logical thinking. This ‘modern’ reason – a prerogative of solely humans among creatures – could be applied to create a better society from the political, civil, educational, scientific, and religious points of view. What is usually less renowned is that for most of the Enlightened thinkers, this philosophical and cultural step was the prerogative of European or Western-educated thinkers, which implies a gradual exclusion of extra-European civilizations from human progress as a natural phenomenon. Thus, with the exception made for a few French libertines, the creation of a better society was due to reason and critical thinking absent in other civilizations, who could, at the most, inherit this ‘rational power’ thanks to the Western education. This exclusion, which is usually attributed to the violence of the colonialist period, is already implied in the arguments of several Enlightened thinkers. Our investigation will follow three steps: the presentation of the three Western historical paradigms in which Eastern civilizations were inserted between the 17th and 18th century; a comparison between the attitude toward China and Buddhism of two very distant philosophers of the Enlightenment – i.e., Pierre Bayle (1647-1706) and Johann Jacob Brucker (1696-1770) – and a brief reflection over the Enlightenment from an ‘external/exotic’ point of view that will suggest the necessity of a ‘new skeptical Enlightenment’ for an actual intercultural dialogue
"Casa da tè" di Lao She. Il testo, il contesto e la serie tv
No full text"Casa da tè" è una delle più grandi opere teatrali del XX secolo. Nei suoi tre atti offre uno straordinario spaccato della vita in Cina antecedente alla svolta del 1949: il fallimento delle riforme del 1898, i primi anni della repubblica e la fase iniziale del secondo dopoguerra. Tali eventi fanno da sfondo alle vicende degli avventori della casa da tè, un vero caleidoscopio di personaggi umili, i quali, in dialetto pechinese, mettono in scena o narrano storie di sopraffazione. Lao She dipinge così il quadro desolante di tre epoche da “seppellire”, perché cariche di ingiustizia, corruzione e violenza.
Ma la scelta di ambientare l’opera in una casa da tè mostra anche una chiara volontà critica nei confronti delle politiche maoiste degli anni ‘50: la rivendicazione di uno spazio privato, libero e ricco di cultura, che già sotto i tardi Qing e i nazionalisti era stato soffocato e vilipeso e che sotto il regime comunista viene addirittura bandito come attività immorale. Come noto, nel 1966 Lao She fu tra le prime vittime illustri della Rivoluzione culturale; quelli, infatti, non erano anni di sottigliezza artistica, bensì di metallurgia pesante, adatti alla lama spessa e approssimativa della sega più che alla delicatezza del cesello di un “vecchio scrittore” colto.
In questa ricerca, insieme alla prima traduzione in italiano del testo teatrale con ricche note traduttive, viene offerto al lettore un articolato inquadramento critico dell’opera e un’indagine sulla sua rilevanza attuale attraverso lo studio delle industrie creative ad essa legate, con un focus specifico sulla serie-tv “Casa da tè” del 2010 in onda su CCTV8 in trentanove puntate
On the first step of ‘Chinese Irrationality’: early Christian definition of Buddhism as a useless doctrine in late Ming China
No full textIt is usually acknowledged that since Colonialist times, Asian ways of thinking were described as weak, irrational, immoral, and thus different and inferior to western ones (see Said). However, this secular–not religious–definition of weakness was already fully in display during the second half of the Seventeenth and early Eighteenth century, when missionary materials became easily available and the “Chinese rites controversy” blew up, overturning Jesuit appraisal of Confucian wisdom.
What we want to show in this article is that seeds of this deprecation are already apparent in Ricci's accommodation method, which is evident when we focus on the rejection of Buddhism rather than the more renowned appreciation of Confucianism. In a quite neglected Jesuit text composed in late Ming China, i.e. Posthumous Disputes (Bianxue yidu 辯學遺牘), we can read a Christian rejection of Buddhist pillars based on perfectly secular probative arguments, instead of aspects we could assume as typically Christian, namely the power of revelation, grace, love, miracles and spirituality. Buddhism is to be expelled from China because of its irrationality, illogicality and uselessness. Buddhist doctrine completely lacks empirical verification. Furthermore, Buddhist principles are against the good ruling of a country.
According to our opinion, this description of Buddhism already discloses the reasons for the later rejection of all Chinese ways of thinking–Confucianism included–which we used to date to the late Enlightenment and particularly the Colonialist epoch, as for instance in Hegelism and Kantism
“Casa da tè: una metafora della Cina di oggi. L'opera teatrale, il brand e il tele-film”
No full textThis essay is an exploration of the political,
cultural and economic relevance of
the theater play Teahouse in China over
the past three decades. After a few remarks
on the Beijing brand “Lao She Teahouse”, we will provide a detailed comparison
between, on one side, the original 1957 text (and the criticism it has received) and,
on the other side, the television series Teahouse broadcasted by channel CCTV8 in
2010. The two main thematic pillars of the latter version, which are not present in the
original play, are the heroism of a moral Confucian exemplified by the character of
Chang Siye) and the great role of young communist soldiers in freeing the country.
While Lao She was accused of having neglected Communism, leaving audiences
with only an unresolved cycle of desperation, it is evident that, on the contrary, the
2010 series is devoted to the appraisal of Communism as the only end to the suffering
of the Chinese people. What we will argue is that this new version fits perfectly
with Hu Jintao and Xi Jinping’s idea of a renovated moral “Socialism with Chinese
characteristics”
Secular Reason as a Tool of the Early Jesuit Mission to China
Full text linkThis paper provides an investigation into Jesuits’ use of secular dialectical strategies during the early part of their evangelization mission in China. In order to prove the relevance of rhetoric stratagems – i. e. scientific verification, logic and universalism of norms – in their attack against Buddhism, this article examines a neglected text, Posthumous Disputes (Bianxue yidu 辯學遺牘). While the Posthumous Disputes (PD) was improperly attributed to Ricci, it is a prime example of Ricci’s accommodation method. Documenting the first real confrontation between a Buddhist and a Christian in China, this text provides an extraordinary window into the first dispute between Europe and China. The secular method of accommodation modelled by Ricci to convert Chinese literati was grounded in the universality of reason that he inherited from Aristotle and Aquinas and the fascination with Western science and techniques. The author uses the universality of reason to both reject Buddhism and Daoism as irrational, unscientific, and non-universal and to present the Christian faith as the most rational doctrine
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