William Theodore De Bary

"Nobility and Civility deals with the values of major Asian traditions - Indian, Chinese, and Japanese, ancient and modern - that have influenced the course of history and are still invoked by twenty-first century leaders."--BOOK JACKET.

"At the time of the Cultural Revolution in China, Confucius was so shadowy a figure in most people's minds that the Gang of Four had to first resurrect him before he could be pilloried and crucified. Since that time, he has continued to haunt the scene. But despite this rejuvenated attention, his status is still unclear." "In Singapore, Korea, Taiwan, Japan, and other parts of East and Southeast Asia, as well as China, people are asking, "What does Confucianism have to offer today?" For some, Confucius is still the symbol of a reactionary and repressive past. For others, he is the humanist admired by generations of scholars and thinkers, East and West. Much depends on whose Confucianism one is considering, its time and place. In the face of such complications, only a scholar of Theodore de Bary's stature could venture broad answers to the question of the significance of Confucianism in today's world.". "De Bary explains the puzzling role and ambiguous character of Confucianism as a liberal humanist teaching that is often appropriated to serve conservative regimes. He discusses the tension between the ideal of the noble man in Confucius and Mencius and the figure of the exemplary sage-king turned authoritarian in the imperial dynasties. On the basis of evidence from both early Confucian teachings and historical developments, de Bary questions the Weberian characterization of Confucianism as a philosophy of acceptance and accommodation, lacking a critical voice or capability for self-transformation. Instead, he sees Confucianism as involving a prophetic voice, identified with the noble man as spokesman for the people's welfare but assigning no responsibility to the people for acting on their own behalf. Institutionally this view became embodied in a two-class structure, a bureaucratic ruling class governing people with no power or responsibility themselves, and later in a one-party state, dominated by a Communist elite. Confucian thinkers in the past were not unaware of the problems, and we can all benefit from learning more about their troubled experience with Confucius' noble ideals."--BOOK JACKET.

xv, 292 pages : 24 cm

A collection of seminal primary readings on the social, intellectual, and religious traditions of China, Sources of Chinese Tradition, Volume 1 has been widely used and praised for almost forty years as an authoritative resource for scholars and students and as a thorough and engaging introduction for general readers. Here at last is a completely revised and expanded edition of this classic sourcebook, compiled by noted China scholars Wm. Theodore de Bary and Irene Bloom. Updated to reflect recent scholarly developments, with extensive material on popular thought and religion, social roles, and women's education, this edition features new translations of more than half the works from the first edition, as well as many new selections. Arranged chronologically, this anthology is divided into four parts, beginning at the dawn of literate Chinese civilization with the Oracle-Bone inscriptions of the late Shang dynasty (1571–1045 B.C.E.) and continuing through the end of the Ming dynasty (C.E. 1644). Each chapter has an introduction that provides useful historical context and offers interpretive strategies for understanding the readings. The first part, The Chinese Tradition in Antiquity, considers the early development of Chinese civilization and includes selections from Confucius's Analects, the texts of Mencius and Laozi, as well as other key texts from the Confucian, Daoist, and Legalist schools. Part 2, The Making of a Classical Culture, focuses on Han China with readings from the Classic of Changes (I Jing), the Classic of Filiality, major Han syntheses, and the great historians of the Han dynasty. The development of Buddhism, from the earliest translations from Sanskrit to the central texts of the Chan school (which became Zen in Japan), is the subject of the third section of the book. Titled Later Daoism and Mahayana Buddhism in China, this part also covers the teachings of Wang Bi, Daoist religion, and texts of the major schools of Buddhist doctrine and practice. The final part, The Confucian Revival and Neo-Confucianism, details the revival of Confucian thought in the Tang, Song, and Ming periods, with historical documents that link philosophical thought to political, social, and educational developments in late imperial China. With annotations, a detailed chronology, glossary, and a new introduction by the editors, Sources of Chinese Tradition will continue to be a standard resource, guidebook, and introduction to Chinese civilization well into the twenty-first century.—Publisher

What is the place of human rights in a society shaped by Confucian principles? Can Confucianism offer useful perspectives on the Western conception of human rights? In this enlightening volume, eighteen leading Western and Chinese authorities on Confucian tradition, modern China, and modern human rights address these timely questions. They offer a balanced forum that seeks common ground, providing needed perspective at a time when the Chinese government, after years of denouncing Confucianism as an aritfact of a feudal past, has made an abrupt reversal to endorse it as a belief system compatible with communist ideology. In using Confucianism as a lens for which to evaluate the strengths and limitations of the principles of human rights, this book makes a significant contribution to understanding the complicated issues surrounding the "values" debate between China, some Asian regimes, and the West.