Category Archives: Chinese philosophy – 中國哲學 – 中国哲学

CFP: 2026 NECCT at Bentley University

We are pleased to announce that the 2026 meeting of theNortheast Conference on Chinese Thought (NECCT)will be held October 30–31, 2026, at Bentley University in Waltham, Massachusetts. This annual conference brings together scholars and graduate students working on Chinese thought across disciplines and methodologies, and welcomes both historically focused and comparative work engaging Chinese perspectives.

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Philip J. Ivanhoe at Columbia on May 1, 5-7pm

Joint session by the Neo-Confucian Studies Seminar and the Comparative Philosophy Seminar at Columbia

Philip J. Ivanhoe (Georgetown): Chinese and Korean Neo-Confucian Views on Not Transferring One’s Anger

ABSTRACT: Early Chinese Confucians believed that in certain circumstances anger is a proper emotion to have, express, and act upon but that it is a potential source of moral error and difficult to control; therefore, it requires special attention and management. Neo-Confucian thinkers in China and Korea accepted and defended these beliefs but offered quite distinctive analyses of what anger is and how it should be attended to, exercised, and managed. They often developed their ideas by reflecting and commenting on the early Confucian teaching of Not Transferring One’s Anger, first seen in the Analects, to explain their views on anger and in particular how to control and direct it. I will describe and explain some representative Confucian views on anger in China and Korea and argue that while the standard neo-Confucian account of anger is not plausible in certain respects, it offers an excellent model or template for thinking about anger and a method for achieving the kind of anger management that we require in order to live well in the contemporary world. I will further argue that the need to understand and manage anger is a particularly pressing problem for people today because, given the nature of our times, for a variety of reasons, it is a much greater liability for wellbeing and humanity than it was in the past.

DATE: Friday, May 1st

TIME: 5:00-7:00pm EDT

LOCATION: Faculty House (64 Morningside Dr, New York, NY 10027)

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Bell Reviews Bruya and Li, trans., Dialogues of Confucius

A review by Daniel Bell of Brian Bruya and Wenwen Li, trans., Dialogues of Confucius: The Complete Text (Princeton, 2026) has been published in the Times Literary Supplement. An excerpt:

…A magnificent new translation by Brian Bruya and Wenwen Li introduces this treasure of intellectual history to the anglophone world. We now know much more about Confucius the person, and about the context for some of the puzzling quotes in the Analects. Best of all, we learn new arguments that push the boundaries of the rich and complex Confucian tradition in new directions….

Episode 33 of “This Is the Way”: Carrots, Sticks, and Rituals

What’s the best way to fight corruption: harsh laws and fear of punishment, or rituals and moral transformation? In this episode we discuss a deep disagreement that takes its inspiration from the political philosophies of the Confucian philosopher Xunzi and the Legalist philosopher Han Feizi. We are also happily joined by Professor Daniel Bell of the University of Hong Kong, one of the world’s leading experts in Chinese political thought. Bell reimagines the views of Xunzi and Han Feizi in his book Why Ancient Chinese Political Thought Matters: Four Dialogues on Chinese Past, Present, and Future. There he stages he stages the debate as a dialogue between a modern-day Professor Xun and his student Han Fei, set against the backdrop of the recent anti-corruption campaign in the People’s Republic of China. The conversation ranges from the psychology of rewards and punishments to meritocracy, institutional design, the question of whether good governance can ever be decoupled from good character, and whether Confucians might be the true realists after all. Continue reading →

Kalmanson Reviews Song, Debating Transcendence

Bin Song, Debating Transcendence: Creatio ex nihilo and Sheng Sheng, Fordham University Press, 2026, 336pp., $40.00 (pbk) ISBN 9781531512095.

Reviewed by Leah Kalmanson, University of North Texas

Bin Song enters longstanding debates over the status of transcendence as a concept in Chinese thought with a book that offers clarity, nuance, and a compelling theoretical intervention. In facing the question of whether Chinese thought has a concept of transcendence, voices on opposing sides often claim the same underlying commitment. Those who answer “yes” are often aligning themselves against Eurocentrism, that is, against the idea that European thought has privileged access to certain philosophical or religious insights. Yet those who answer “no” are also often aligning themselves against Eurocentrism. That is, they are making the point that we should…

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Workshop at Duke: Varieties of Harmony in Greek and Chinese Philosophy

The workshop, “Varieties of Harmony in Greek and Chinese Philosophy,” will take place at Duke University on April 16–17, 2026. Click here for event details, here to register for in-person attendance, and here for virtual attendance via Zoom. It is an interdisciplinary workshop that brings together scholars of ancient Greek philosophy and early Chinese philosophy to explore different conceptions of interpersonal harmony, including family relationships, friendship, civic cooperation, ethical cultivation, and social/political relations. The event aims to foster comparative dialogue across traditions and to highlight both convergences and important differences in how interpersonal harmony is understood and cultivated. The workshop is organized by Wenjin Liu and David Wong.