Abstract
This essay initiates elements of a Daoist stance as regards the basic assumptions and principles involved in debates on multiculturalism. This is to be achieved via an examination of Zhang Taiyan’s 章太炎 mid-term political philosophy, which is shaped by his interpretation and further development of Daoist thinking, especially the notion of no-thing and the idea of “achieving equality by leaving things uneven” (buqi er qi 不齊而齊). After explicating the basic tenets that point toward a Daoist stance on what is now called multiculturalism, I discuss Zhang’s concrete proposals concerning the relation between the Han 漢 lineage and the other four major ethnic groups in the to-be-established Republic of China. I then investigate Zhang’s unique theory of the state. Lastly, I explore the discordance in Zhang Taiyan’s thinking despite his privileging of Laozi 老子 and Zhuangzi’s 莊子 ideas.
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Ma, L. Taking Zhang Taiyan into Multiculturalism: What about Achieving Equality by Leaving Things Uneven (Buqi Er Qi)?. Dao 16, 73–93 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11712-016-9535-5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11712-016-9535-5