Play seems to constitute an important part of a flourishing human life. Most of us experience play through things like simple childhood games of hide-and-go-seek or more intellectual activities like chess or go. What these experiences of play have in common is that they are circumscribed in various ways to the times, places, and circumstances established by the boundaries and rules of those games. But what if the attitudes that we bring to play were applied to our lives more broadly? In this episode we explore the concept of play as a way of life. We explore it with Professor Pauline Lee (Saint Louis University), an expert in Chinese thought, focusing on the famous “gourd passage” from Chapter One of the Zhuangzi. Continue reading →
Post-Doc in Chinese Buddhist Philosophy
The Institute for the Cultural and Intellectual History of Asia (IKGA) of the Austrian Academy of Sciences (OeAW), Austria’s leading non-university research and science institution, is offering a POSTDOC POSITION (F/M/X) (part-time, 36 hours per week) in the European Research Council project “The Ethics of Empty Beliefs: Chinese Buddhist Philosophy in the ‘Period of Disunity’” (CHINBUDDHPHIL) (ERC-2022-StG-101077136).
The successful candidate will contribute to the project, principally by conducting research on the philosophy of the Sanlun 三論 school of Chinese Buddhism in relation to Western philosophy.
Loy Reviews Kim, Confucian Constitutionalism
Sungmoon Kim, Confucian Constitutionalism: Dignity, Rights, and Democracy, Oxford University Press, 2023, 296pp., $83.00 (hbk), ISBN 9780197630617.
Reviewed by Hui-chieh Loy, National University of Singapore
Sungmoon Kim’s book continues his long-standing project of bringing together insights from Confucianism and a political theorizing meant to be fit for the modern world. Like his earlier works, the new book combines interesting discussions of pre-modern texts and thoughtful applications of ancient ideas to modern concerns. The ambition of the book, as stated early on, is to articulate a “democratic theory of Confucian constitutionalism” (1). This ambition situates Kim’s book within the ongoing debate between the two main competing strands of modern Confucian political theorizing: Confucian political meritocracy and Confucian democracy. Kim advocates for the latter, putting his proposals…
Updates to Graduate Program listing
Here at the blog we do our best to keep the page dedicated to Graduate Programs in Chinese Philosophy up-to-date, including listing recent changes near the top of that page. Significant recent updates include noting Chris Fraser’s move to the University of Hong Kong, adding the University of Warwick (and Curie Virág), and noting Chenyang Li’s retirement from Nanyang Technological University. Please leave a comment or email me directly with any suggestions or updates!
The Mojing: New Translation of Sun Zhongyuan’s Research on Mohist Logic
Brill has recently published the English translation of Sun Zhongyuan’s work on Mohist Logic, The Mojing. In this book, Sun investigates the historical contributions made to the research of logic in China, its modern value, its significance to the world, and how the form of logic developed in China is united with those from the rest of the world, focusing on Mohist (mojia 墨家) logic in particular as its core concern. The book is accessible here.
Job Opening: NYU one-year post in East Asian Cultures
Liberal Studies at New York University invites applications for a one year Visiting Clinical Assistant Professor position in East Asian Cultures to begin September 1, 2025, pending administrative and budgetary approval. Please see here for more details (the application deadline is Nov. 1 2024).
Lecture: Women’s Affective Labor in the Red Army’s Propaganda by Ping Zhu, October 21
This coming Monday, October 21st, at 9:00am Beijing time the 四海为学 “Collaborative Learning” Project will host a lecture by Professor Ping Zhu. For details, including the Zoom link please see the event page. No pre-registration or passcode will be required.
For a list of more upcoming events see the calendar of 四海为学 “Collaborative Learning”.
Book Discussion this Friday: Tristan Brown’s Laws of the Land
The 四海为学 “Collaborative Learning” Project will host a book discussion of Tristan Brown’s Laws of the Land this Friday, October 18th, at 9:00am Beijing time. Please find the details and the zoom link on the project’s page: https://www.sihaiweixue.org/
For a list of upcoming events see 四海为学 “Collaborative Learning” Project’s calendar here.
Schedule and RSVP: Northeast Conference on Chinese Thought Nov 2-3 at Baruch College, CUNY
The 2024 meeting of the Northeast Conference on Chinese Thought (NECCT) will be held on November 2-3 at Baruch College, City University of New York. This annual meeting is an opportunity for scholars of Chinese thought (broadly construed) from across the northeast US (also somewhat broadly construed) to gather and share their research in various stages of progress.
Here is a link to the conference schedule, which also includes a link to the abstracts for the scheduled talks.
This is an in-person event. We welcome participants to come and join the conversations. Please note that space is limited. If you plan on attending, please RSVP using this link as soon as possible, and no later than October 25th. Only those who RSVP will be allowed entry to the campus.
We are grateful for the generous financial support of CUNY Graduate Center and the Weissman School of Arts and Sciences at Baruch College.
Please direct any questions about the conference to Hagop Sarkissian (hagop.sarkissian@baruch.cuny.edu) or Wenqing Zhao (zhaowenqing711@gmail.com).
NECCT Organizing Committee:
Stephen Angle (Wesleyan University)
Mick Hunter (Yale University)
Andrew Lambert (CUNY College of Staten Island)
Ellen Neskar (Sarah Lawrence College)
Thomas Radice (Southern Connecticut State University)
Hagop Sarkissian (CUNY Graduate Center/Baruch College CUNY)
Christopher Yang (Brown University)
Wenqing Zhao (Baruch College, CUNY)
Episode 11 of “This Is the Way”: Nonaction in the Daodejing
The concept of wuwei 無為/无为, often translated as nonaction or effortless action, is central to classical Chinese philosophy. But what exactly is the idea and what are its practical implications? What puzzles does it raise regarding the nature of human actions, purpose, and intention? We examine these questions by focusing on some central passages from the Daodejing.
Continue reading →
