Author Archives: Margery Fang

四海为学 “Collaborative Learning“ Free Online Courses

This spring the 四海为学 Collaborative Learning Project will host two free online courses. The courses are open to anyone. No registration is required.
“The Contemporary Significance of Confucian and Daoist Philosophies” will be led by Michael Puett and Paul J. D’Ambrosio on Tuesdays at 21:00 Beijing time.
“Daoist Philosophy of Education” will be led by Geir Sigurðsson and Paul J. D’Ambrosio on Tuesdays at 18:00 Beijing time.
For more information, including links to join, please visit this website.

Summer School in Classical Chinese and Classical Japanese in Venice

Ca’ Foscari University of Venice has been collaborating with Princeton University for their Summer School in Classical Chinese and Classical Japanese/Kanbun. It offers two tracks of comprehensive, grammar-focused instruction taught by faculty members from both Ca’ Foscari and Princeton. The program is designed especially for students who wish to develop their linguistic expertise for graduate study in any discipline of premodern China or Japan. Students can choose between two tracks: each track offers language classes in addition to a lecture series on topics in premodern Chinese or Japanese culture (history, literature, thought). Both tracks welcome students who are beginners in Classical Chinese or Japanese, as well as those who already have some background foundation. Please visit the website or access this attachment for further information on the program and application process.

CFP: Teaching Intercultural Philosophy, Cordoba (June 2025)

In the current climate of increasing provincialism and geopolitical division, the need to decenter and deprovincialize philosophical education is vital. Engaging with multiple traditions can illuminate new pathways of thought and reveal overlooked perspectives. Expanding the traditions valued for study is central to the vocation of intercultural, comparative, and global philosophy, while remaining committed to intellectual honesty, universally shared values as well as the pursuit of truth and practical wisdom.
The task of integrating philosophical reflections on diverse ideas that have emerged in, among other regions, Africa, China, India, Japan and Latin America, together with the Western tradition in secondary and tertiary education, is largely left to individual initiatives and instructors. This conference aims to assess the progress made in integrating these approaches within philosophical education. The teaching Intercultural Philosophy Universidad Loyola invites participants to explore different methods, synergies, and common challenges in teaching intercultural philosophy.

Please read more to find details on the conference and the application process. Continue reading →

Book of Interest: The Gongsun Longzi and Other Neglected Texts

A book we missed here on the blog when it came out: Rafael Suter , Lisa Indraccolo, and Wolfgang Behr, The Gongsun Longzi and Other Neglected Texts: Aligning Philosophical and Philological Perspectives (De Gruyter 2020)

The Gongsun Longzi is often considered the only extant work of the Classical Chinese “School of Names”, an early intellectual tradition (trad. dated to the 4th cent. B.C.) mainly concerned with logic and the philosophy of language. The book is a heterogeneous collection of five chapters that include short treatises and largely fictive dialogues between an anonymous persuader and his opponent, which typically revolve around a paradoxical claim. Its value as a testimony to Early Chinese philosophy, however, is somewhat controversial due to the intricate textual history of the text and our limited knowledge about its intellectual backgrounds. This volume gathers contributions by leading specialists in the fields of Classical Chinese philosophy, philology, logic, and linguistics. Besides an overview of the scholarly literature on the topic and a detailed account of the reception of the text throughout time, it presents fresh insights into philological and philosophical problems raised by the Gongsun Longzi and other closely-related texts equally attributed to the “School of Names”.

To access the book for further reading, please visit this site.

CFP: Workshop on Revenge at KU Leuven

Revenge can clearly be used to criticize power structures and renegotiate accepted norms but is similarly governed by its own set of rules. But how do such opposites—rules and the unruly, entertainment and brutality, ritual and defiance of norms—go together and relate to one another within the act of revenge? And how might the tension between such opposites be dissolved? How did revenge become such an influential cultural trope in China? What is revenge used for in all these different contexts? And how did it change over the long history from early China to the present day?

The Repay Resentment with Straightforwardness? Exploring Revenge in the Chinese Context workshop seeks to study revenge in all fields of the Chinese socio-cultural realm to uncover its many facets and the relations between them. Therefore, participants are invited to explore the topic of revenge from various angles and with creative approaches, in hope to cover methodologies from diverse fields, including but not limited to: Anthropology, sociology, literature studies, philosophy, theater studies, history, political sciences, archaeology,
criminology etc. Presentation of both case studies as well as wider theoretical reflections on the nature of revenge in China are welcomed.

Please read more for further information of the workshop.

Continue reading →

New Book: Chan, Towards Confucian Republicanism

Oxford has recently published Elton Chan’s Towards Confucian Republicanism: Democracy as Virtue Politics. In the book, Chan develops a theoretical framework of Confucianism for the twenty-first century. Chan argues that liberal Confucians must take seriously the internal authoritarian leanings of Confucianism–and then argue against such strands of the Confucian tradition. He shows that Confucians are keen on concentrating power in the hands of the virtuous not merely for promoting order and material livelihood, but also for general moral cultivation. Yet this use of political and moral hierarchy as institutional platforms for perfectionist development is self-defeating.

To counter the authoritarian turn in Confucian scholarship, Chan articulates a vision of a hybrid political order that brings together Confucianism and republican democracy. He makes the case that Confucianism stands a much higher chance of achieving its political and moral ideals–good governance and collective virtuous cultivation–when merged with republicanism. Covering a uniquely wide range of Confucian classics and outlining his novel vision for Confucianism, Chan addresses pressing issues in contemporary political philosophy, including virtue politics, balance of power, civic education, public reason constraint, and the role of civil society.

To access the book for further reading, please visit this site.

四海为学 “Collaborative Learning“ Roundtable: Considering Non-Humans

On January 9th at 9:00am Beijing time the 四海为学 “Collaborative Learning” Project will host a roundtable on “Considering Non-Humans”. To find details and the Zoom link, please visit the project’s event page. No pre-registration or passcode is required is required for Zoom participation.
A list of the project’s upcoming events can be found at the calendar here.

四海为学 “Collaborative Learning“ Lecture by Fabian Heubel

On January 6th at 19:00(pm) Beijing time the 四海为学 “Collaborative Learning” Project will host a lecture by Professor Fabian Heubel, titled “Without Nothingness: Reflections on Transcultural Entanglements of Being and Way”. To find details and the Zoom link, please visit the project’s event page. No pre-registration or passcode is required is required for Zoom participation.
A list of the project’s upcoming events can be found at the calendar here.