Category Archives: Contemporary Confucianism

New Book: Elstein, ed., Dao Companion to Contemporary Confucian Philosophy

The latest volume in the authoritative Dao Companion series has been published: David Elstein, ed., Dao Companion to Contemporary Confucian Philosophy (Springer, 2021). The editorial description:

This edited volume presents a comprehensive examination of contemporary Confucian philosophy from its roots in the late 19th century to the present day. It provides a thorough introduction to the major philosophers and topics in contemporary Confucian philosophy. The individual chapters study the central figures in 20th century Confucian philosophy in China, Taiwan, and Hong Kong, as well as the important influences on recent Confucian philosophy. In addition, topical chapters focus on contemporary Confucian theory of knowledge, ethics, politics, aesthetics, and views of human nature. The volume brings together scholars from around the world to provide a sound overview of the philosophy of the period and illustrate the important current debates. Confucian philosophy has been undergoing a revival in China for more than three decades, and this book presents the most significant work of the past century and more. By giving a detailed account of the philosophical positions involved, explaining the terminology of contemporary Confucian philosophy, and situating the views in their historical context, this volume enables the reader to understand what is at stake and evaluate the arguments.

The Table of Contents follows.

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CEACOP Workshop: Modern Confucianism between Philosophy and Sociology

The Center for East Asian and Comparative Philosophy (CEACOP) at the City University of Hong Kong is organising a workshop on 10 Dec in which Prof. Ralph Weber and his team will present their projects on 20th century Confucianism. Please find the event poster here with information about how to register. All are welcome!

Journal issue on “Confucianism: Comparisons & Controversies”

The Journal Culture and Dialogue has published a special issue on “Confucianism: Comparisons & Controversies,” guest edited by Eirik Lang Harris and Henrique Schneider, available here: https://brill.com/view/journals/cad/8/2/cad.8.issue-2.xml
The essays include:

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Tongdong Bai’s Book Symposium on Against Political Equality—The Confucian Case

City University of Hong Kong is presenting an online book symposium on Tong Dongbai’s Against Political Equality: The Case of Confucianism:

Date: October 23, 2020 (Friday)
Time: 9:00am-12:00pm (HKT)
Venue: Online (The panel will be held in Zoom)

Participants:
Tongdong Bai, Fudan University
Sungmoon Kim, City University of Hong Kong
Alan Patten, Princeton University
Russell A. Fox, Friends University
Hui-chieh Loy, National University of Singapore

Registration is required to attend this event.  To register, please email Mr. David Chung: kinchung@cityu.edu.hk.

The following is an abstract of Tong Dongbai’s book:
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Jiwei Ci’s Book Symposium on Democracy in China—The Coming Crisis

City University of Hong Kong is presenting an online book symposium on Jiwei Ci’s Democracy in China: The Coming Crisis:

Date: October 24, 2020 (Saturday)
Time: 9:00am-12:00pm (HKT)
Venue: Online (The panel will be held in Zoom)

Participants:
Jiwei Ci, University of Hong Kong
Sungmoon Kim, City University of Hong Kong
Joseph Chan, University of Hong Kong
Tomer Perry, Minerva Schools at KGI

Registration is required to attend this event.  To register, please email Mr. David Chung: kinchung@cityu.edu.hk.

The following is an abstract of Jiwei Ci’s book:

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Bai On-Line Lecture on Confucian Meritocracy

Of the People, for the People, but not by the People ― Confucian Meritocracy as a Correction of Democracy (BAI Tongdong, Fudan University, China)
Thursday, October 08, 2020, 07:00pm – 08:30pm

This talk is co-sponsored by Rutgers Global-China Office. It is open to the public, but registration is required; please see below for information.

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Confucianism and Resistance in Hong Kong

Earlier this month Joseph Chan, a well-known authority on Confucianism at the University of Hong Kong, published a short essay (in Chinese) that draws on the Analects (especially 8:13) to think about people’s responsibilities when a state “lacks the Way.” A very brief summary: when Confucius says that in a state lacking the Way one should “yin 隱” (which is translated “conceal” in that Ctext link), he does not mean that one should hide away and fail to engage with the society. It might be worth contrasting this with questions raised in 2014 during the Umbrella Movement about the lack of Confucian discourse at that time.

Bin Song on Ru Meditation

Bin Song has begun a podcast series of Ru meditation, starting from several audios about Ru Breathing. They are currently in his website: https://binsonglive.wordpress.com/ru-breathing/. He plans to do more in the future including topics such as postures of Ru meditation, Ru meditation in Motion, and how to manage one’s emotions, etc. Check it out!

New Book: State-Society Relations and Confucian Revivalism in Contemporary China

Qin PANG has published State-Society Relations and Confucian Revivalism in Contemporary China (Palgrave Macmillan, 2019); see here for details. The abstract:

This book is a study of the causes of the Confucian revival and the party-state’s response in China today. It concentrates on the interactions between state and society, and the implications for the Chinese state’s control over society, or in other words, its survival over a rapidly modernizing society. The book explores the answers to questions such as: Why has Confucianism suddenly gathered great momentum in contemporary Chinese society? What is the role of the Chinese state in its rise? Is the state really the orchestrator of the Confucian revival as has been widely assumed? This book will be of interest to think-tank and policy researchers, sinologists, and those with an interest in Chinese society.