This essay takes as it subject Lunyu jindu 論語今讀, Li Zehou’s “translation” from classical into modern Chinese of one of the Four Books, a classic that long-standing tradition claims was generated within the immediate circles of Master Confucius himself. Rather than blandly touting the inherent superiority of whichever brands of Chinese or Confucian “tradition” currently meet the approval of leading PRC figures in establishment politics, academia, and the media—old Daotong 道統 truisms retrofitted for nationalistic purposes 1—Li wants to deconstruct (...) “tradition”. He wants to return our attention to aspects of... (shrink)

Thierry Meynard examines how the Jesuits in China came to understand the Confucian tradition, and how they offered the first complete translation of the Lunyu in the West, in the Confucius Sinarum Philosophus.

Central to Confucian teachings in the Analects is the ideal of self-cultivation—in particular that of the junzi 君子 (“gentleman” “nobleman”) ideal. At the same time that Confucius recommends that individuals follow such an ideal, he also places limits on who actually might attain it. By examining statements involving such terms as the junzi, the “petty man” ( xiao ren 小人), and the “masses” ( min 民, or zhong 眾), or common people, this essay highlights the sociopolitical and gender restrictions informing (...) one of the most basic, yet lofty, ethical goals of the text. A new means is also offered of discussing these socially delimited discrepancies in moral cultivation by referring to leading, or self-determining agency in association with junzi on the one hand, and to conformist agency for women and common people on the other. (shrink)

This paper describes the first known translation from the Confucian classics into Swedish, a collection of eighty quotations from the Lunyu published as an appendix to J. A. Bellman’s Wishetenes råd (1707). The work is a third-generation translation, made from the French La morale de Confucius (1688), which is itself an abridged translation of the Latin Confucius Sinarum philosophus (1687). This paper selects ten of the eighty quotations for detailed analysis and commentary. The main findings are that the translation (...) removes so much of the Chinese context and Confucian technical vocabulary that the text becomes almost indistinguishable from generic wisdom literature. Furthermore, the Swedish translator adds a layer of “Christian” vocabulary, which was not present in the Latin and French versions. However, at a time when Sweden had almost no contact with non-Christian cultures, the translation may have played a valuable role in making the Swedish public positively disposed toward Chinese culture. (shrink)

The article argues in the first part that the Lunyu is the only early text in which Confucius is not depicted as the ultimate sage authority who knows an answer to all questions. Instead the Confucius of the Lunyu leaves questions open and points out limits of possible knowledge. The second part of the article shows that in the exegesis of the Gongyang Zhuan we find exactly the same attitudes of Confucius. The article argues in the third part (...) that the specific character of the Lunyu construction of Confucius lies in its ascribing to him professional attitudes found in the realm of historiography and ritual expertise. (shrink)

This article explores the received version of Huang Kan's (488–545) Lunyu Yishu and a Tang manuscript fragment that stems from it, with a view to investigating residues of the oral transmission of glosses and interpretations of the Lunyu (the Analects). The discussion is based on close readings of passages that display remnants of the oral transmission of interpretations and attest to pedagogical techniques applied by Huang Kan during the Liang Dynasty (502–557) and by an unknown tutor in Dunhuang (...) toward the end of the Tang Dynasty (618–907). The two versions of the Lunyu Yishu are read as texts of oral utterances that bear evidence of two distinct layers of recognizable oral vestiges. (shrink)

Here the author takes ren-humanity to be, as Confucius says, an underlying, ineffable, potentially universal human quality, and draws a distinction between three different types of moral capacity in the Lunyu: the man of ren’s capacity for li-proper interactions, his capacity for total reciprocity with another, and his capacity to make moral discriminations. The nature of these moral judgments is then discussed in relation to the praxis of entering into shu-reciprocity with another and that of recognizing others’ actions as (...) being li-proper. A key question is that of whether even an intuitive feeling of commonality, if not identity, with another man-of-ren involves a subjective judgment. Confucius’ view that foreigners can respect ren even if they may not possess it is also discussed. The author suggests that any viable ethical model would need to maintain a universal standard of humaneness while also including a maximum degree of openness to the other. (shrink)

Die Aussprüche des Konfuzius sind einer der zentralen Texte der chinesischen Kultur. Dennoch ist die Geschichte ihrer Entstehung und Überlieferung weitgehend unerforscht und der heute gelesene Text samt seinem Verständnis kritiklos von der chinesischen Tradition übernommen worden. Dieses Buch unternimmt es, diese Versäumnisse nachzuholen: Durch die Analyse der Aussprüche und anderer früher Texte entsteht ein differenziertes Bild ihrer Entstehung aus mündlich überlieferten Sprüchen und Anekdoten über ein sich schnell verfestigendes Textkorpus bis hin zum Buch im heutigen Sinne. Anhand historischer Quellen (...) und der heute noch in grosser Zahl und Vielfalt greifbaren Textzeugnisse zeichnet der Autor die zahlreichen Wege nach, welche die Aussprüche in ihren verschiedenen Versionen zu uns genommen haben. Darüber hinaus beleuchtet er die geistesgeschichtlichen, politischen und kulturellen Zusammenhänge, welche die Gestalt und das Verständnis des Textes beeinflussten. Zuletzt zeichnet die Arbeit ein Bild von den Entstellungen, denen der Text und sein Verständnis im Laufe der Geschichte unterworfen waren und zeigt den Weg auf, diese zu überwinden und zu einer kritischen und streng wissenschaftlichen Lektüre zu gelangen. Was dabei an den Aussprüchen sichtbar wird, ist auch beispielhaft für die Problematik anderer konfuzianischer Klassiker und der altchinesischen Literatur überhaupt. (shrink)

This paper is intended as a gateway to two 2000-year-old manuscripts of the Analects. The first two sections discuss the archaeological context of the discoveries and analyse the manuscripts themselves, including characteristic features of the bamboo strips and the texts inked thereon and notable differences between these and other Analects versions. In these sections, I also critically evaluate present-day Analects studies and offer alternative hypotheses where there is room for debate. The third and final section of the paper discusses what (...) I consider the most fascinating (and most complex) issue regarding the manuscripts: their provenance. In that section, I examine when, where, and why the Analects was copied onto the bamboo strips. The ultimate goal of this paper is to present a nuanced understanding of the two bamboo manuscripts that conveys the fascinating insights they offer while also exploring the limitations of what these manuscripts can actually tell us. (shrink)

Neo-Confucianism of the Han and Tang dynasties is an indispensable part of the history of Chinese philosophy. From Han dynasty Confucians to Tang dynasty Confucians, the study of Confucian classics evolved progressively from textual research to conceptual explanation. A significant sign of this transformation is the book Lunyu Bijie 论语笔解 (A Written Explanation of the Analects), co-authored by Han Yu and Li Ao. Making use of the tremendous room for interpretation within the Analects, the book studied and reorganized the (...) relationship between the study of literature and the Dao and principles. It clearly shows an inevitable development of Confucianism, shifting its focus from phenomena to the nature of the heart-mind in order to comprehend nature and heavenly Dao, both of which cannot be heard (from Confucius). (shrink)

In his dialogue with Zai Wo about the three-year mourning, Confucius establishes a principle of 'justification by feeling at ease,' and insists that one should transcend natural desires by moral emotions. More significantly, he further regards kinship love as the ultimate root and supreme principle of human life. Thus, this dialogue contains almost all the basic elements of the Confucian spirit of consanguineous affection.

Communicating with Confucius based on our own hermeneutical context, and reading the Analects as a text of philosophical hermeneutics, it can be concluded that as an epochal thinker, the contribution of Confucius’ thought is that it initiated a humanistic moral ideal with cultural upbringing as its core. Based on this consciousness of humanistic moral ideal, Confucius thought and dealt positively with the human existential plight and social political problems that he faced during his own time, and his thought is more (...) creative than conservative. (shrink)

Ce volume rassemble les textes majeurs du confucianisme : " Les entretiens " de Confucius, " La grande étude " de Daxue et " Le classique de la Piété filiale " de Xiaojing.

Journal of Chinese Philosophy, EarlyView.

The debate on the yan-yi relation was carried out by Chinese philosophers collectively, and the principles and methods in the debate still belong to a living tradition of Chinese philosophy. From Yijing, Lunyu, Laozi and Zhuangzi to Wang Bi, "yi" which cannot be expressed fully by yan, is not only "idea" or "meaning" in the human mind, but is also some kind of ontological existence, which is beyond yan and emblematic symbols, and unspeakable. Thus, the debate on the yan-yi (...) relation refers firstly to metaphysics, secondly to moral philosophy, and then to epistemology and philosophy of language. Guided by this view, this paper recalls the source of the debate on the yan-yi relation to Yijing and Lunyu, distinguishes four meanings of "yi" in Chinese philosophy, and reconstructs three arguments. These arguments are the "yan cannot express yi fully" argument, "forget yan once you get yi" argument, and "yan can express yi fully" argument. Finally, this paper exposes and comments on those principles, methods and the general tendency shown in the debate from the following five aspects: starting point, value-preference, methodology, texts, and influences. (shrink)

The debate on the yan-yi relation was carried out by Chinese philosophers collectively, and the principles and methods in the debate still belong to a living tradition of Chinese philosophy. From Yijing (Book of Changes), Lunyu (Analects), Laozi and Zhuangzi to Wang Bi, "yi" which cannot be expressed fully by yan (language), is not only "idea" or "meaning" in the human mind, but is also some kind of ontological existence, which is beyond yan and emblematic symbols, and unspeakable. Thus, (...) the debate on the yan-yi relation refers firstly to metaphysics, secondly to moral philosophy, and then to epistemology and philosophy of language. Guided by this view, this paper recalls the source of the debate on the yan-yi relation to Yijing and Lunyu, distinguishes four meanings of "yi" in Chinese philosophy, and reconstructs three arguments. These arguments are the "yan cannot express yi fully" argument, "forget yan once you get yi" argument, and "yan can express yi fully" argument. Finally, this paper exposes and comments on those principles, methods and the general tendency shown in the debate from the following five aspects: starting point, value-preference, methodology, texts (papers and books), and influences. (shrink)

Traditional sources for understanding of the thought of Confucius, such as the Lunyu 論語 (Analects) and Li ji 禮記 (Book of Ritual), are fraught with uncertainty in terms of dating and reliability. Recently excavated manuscripts from Warring States China, however, have begun to shed new light on the development of Confucian thought and the shaping of Confucius as a narrative figure during the two centuries following his death. This paper surveys and briefly assesses the significance of the relevant texts (...) from two major unearthed corpuses: the Guodian Bamboo Manuscripts of Chu 郭店楚墓竹簡 and the Shanghai Museum Manuscripts of Chu 上海博物館藏戰國楚竹書. These include: “Ziyi,” “Zun deyi,” “Min zhi fumu,” “Zhonggong,” “Zigao,” “Lu bang da han,” “Xiang bang zhi dao,” “Yan Yuan wen yu Kong Zi,” “Junzi wei li,” “Dizi wen,” “Kongzi jian Ji Huanzi,” “Ji Kangzi wen yu Kong Zi,” “Kong Zi shilun,” and “Cong zheng.”. (shrink)

This chapter explores the question of Confucius as a sage of “profound greatness” who embodies the fullness of Dao in his being (xuansheng 玄聖). It also discusses briefly the development of Lunyu learning in early medieval China. Xuanxue is often translated as “neo‐Daoism”. The merit of this translation is that it points to a new hermeneutical engagement with tradition, with a sharp focus on the concept of Dao. The idea of Confucius as a sage of profound greatness, wonders, and (...) mystery opens up a rich space for intellectual development. Whereas suwang may be of particular value to understanding the Confucius of history, xuansheng brings the sage into the present, into the thick of philosophical debate about the source, direction, and end of human existence. Different views on whether the sage experiences emotions can be found already in the Zhuangzi. The Zhuangzi argues that all phenomena ultimately rest on stillness and quiescence. (shrink)

The Lunyu 論語 (Analects of Confucius), Daodejing 道德經 (Classic of the Way and Virtuosity) or Laozi 老子 (Book of Master Lao), and the Zhuangzi 莊子 (Book of Master Zhuang) have been broadly classified as representative of Confucianism (Lunyu) and Daoism (Laozi and Zhuangzi). This loose grouping, and the similarities and differences associated with these “schools” include some of the most telling and simultaneously misleading generalizations about Chinese philosophy or thought in general. These articles seek to provide an overview (...) of the relationship between Confucianism and Daoism. The first article begins before with a generalized topics based comparison of the Lunyu, Laozi and Zhuangzi. The latter two texts include their own significant differences, but I will, wherever possible, look for generalities that fit both. The major themes considered in this first part are (1) the perspectives on names (ming 名) and actualities (shi 實), (2) cultivation, learning, and what is considered natural (ziran 自然), and finally (3) conceptions of the person. (shrink)

In the Lunyu, Confucius remarks on the implausibility—or impossibility—of a life lacking in xin 信, reliability (2.22). In existing discussions of Confucian philosophy, this aspect of life is often eclipsed by greater emphasis on Confucian values such as ren 仁 (benevolence), li 禮 (propriety) and yi 義 (rightness). My discussion addresses this imbalance by focusing on reliability, extending current debates in two ways. First, it proposes that the common translation of xin as denoting coherence between a person’s words and (...) deeds is inadequate. The translation fails to capture the longer-term consistency in a person’s actions and behaviours in different circumstances across time. Second, it explores how the Lunyu passages discuss the processes of learning that prepare a person for reliable action. (shrink)

Ren in the Lunyu is often taken to be virtue; if virtue is taken to be excellence as performing a function, as Plato understands it, this is not persuasive. Nor is it easy to show how ren encompasses or implies all other virtues. Ren is furthermore ambiguous—it is used both in a wide sense and specifically as benevolence; in fact there are at least six accounts of what ren is in the Lunyu. This ambiguity cannot be made harmless (...) by use of speech act theory, since commands, for example, require satisfaction conditions for them to be comprehensible. I conclude on a skeptical note: how ren is to be understood as virtue, if at all, remains unclear. (shrink)

The progressive dominance of historical-critical methods in the reading of ancient Chinese classics has led scholars to privilege micro levels of textual analysis. Consequently, the question as to whether laws of composition could be identified in this corpus has often been ignored, or considered irrelevant. Working on Chinese number symbolism as well as on rules governing “ring composition” in other cultural contexts, this article aims at fashioning anew the question of the possibility of an ancient Chinese “structural rhetoric” and at (...) envisioning the patterns that might have governed it. It specifically applies the approach it propounds to Huainanzi 淮南子, showing how numerology frames its structure and argument, the text being built after the image of the “roundness” of the Way and of the Ruler. It then endeavors to apply these results to the unearthing of “inter-structural” patterns that would help us to locate Huainanzi, Lüshi Chunqiu 呂氏春秋, the versions at hand of Zhuangzi 莊子, Lunyu 論語, or yet Laozi 老子 into a textual universe that shares correlated rhetorical features. (shrink)

Li 禮 (translated variously as “ritual”, “etiquette”, or “propriety”) plays a central role in early Confucianism, but its complexity is not always fully understood. At first glance, it may seem as if li behaviors are merely attempts to promote conservative practices from the idealized Chinese past. However, by examining the nature and function of li, as described the Analects (Lunyu 論語) and the Xunzi 荀子 (two key texts in the early Confucian tradition), it becomes overwhelmingly apparent that li is (...) a much more complicated phenomenon. Li actually plays key roles within the interconnected fields of Confucian ethics, religion, and politics and often adds aesthetic elements to these areas of thought. As such, it is as much a source of Confucian innovation as it is a tool for promoting reverence for the past. (shrink)

Contrary to what several prominent scholars contend, a number of important early Confucians ground their ethical claims by appealing to the authority of tian, Heaven, insisting that Heaven endows human beings with a distinctive ethical nature and at times acts in the world. This essay describes the nature of such appeals in two early Confucian texts: the Lunyu (Analects) and Mengzi (Mencius). It locates this account within a larger narrative that begins with some of the earliest conceptions of a (...) supreme deity in China. The essay concludes by noting some similarities and differences between these early Confucian accounts and more familiar views commonly shared by monotheists. (shrink)

For anyone interested in China—its past, its present, and its future—_The_ _Analects_ (Lunyu) is a must-read. This new translation by renowned East Asian scholar Moss Roberts will offer a fresh interpretation of this classic work, sharpening and clarifying Confucius's positions on ethics, politics, and social organization. While no new edition of _The_ _Analects_ will wholly transform our understanding of Confucius’s teachings, Roberts’s translation attends to the many nuances in the text that are often overlooked, allowing readers a richer understanding (...) of Confucius’ historic and heroic attempt to restore order and morality to government. This edition features a critical introduction by the translator as well as notes on key terms and historical figures, a topical index, and suggestions for further reading in recent English and Chinese scholarship to extend the rich contextual background of the translation. This ambitious new edition of _The_ _Analects_ will enhance the understanding of specialists and newcomers to Confucius alike. (shrink)

Im Jahr 2002 wurde seitens der chinesischen Regierung die Forderung der Entfaltung der exzellenten nationalkulturellen Tradition aufgestellt. Nach einem Kultur-Gipfelforum mit dem Hauptthema "Globalisierung und die Chinesische Kultur" unter der Leitung von bedeutenden Wissenschaftlern wie Ren Jiyu, Ji Xianlin u. a. im Jahre 2004 stieg die Wertschätzung des Konfuzianismus als Kernbestandteil "exzellenter Nationalkultur". Folglich wächst heutzutage das Interesse an konfuzianischen Klassikern wieder, vorwiegend für Lunyu. Infolge des gestiegenen Interesses versuchten Autoren im neuen Zeitalter in China, diesen Klassiker neu auszulegen. (...) Am bekanntesten wurden die Bücher von Yu Dan. Einflussreich waren auch die Interpretationen von Li Ling und He Xin. Folglich werden diese neuen Interpretationen hier als Formen der Rekonstruktion der konfuzianischen Tradition behandelt und in drei Arten klassifiziert: volkstümlich, populärwissenschaftlich sowie akademisch. Die Theorie dieser Forschungsarbeit stützt sich auf dem Traditionsbegriff. Infolgedessen wird die Tradition aus der neologistischen Perspektive, im alltagssprachlichen Bezug, nach politischem Verständnis und im wissenschaftlichen Gebiet analysiert. Dann wird die Tradition als ein Konstrukt definiert, das aus über Generationen weitergegebenen Kulturelementen besteht. Daher wird der Konfuzianismus sowohl als ein bedeutsames Element der chinesischen Tradition als auch als eine konfuzianische Tradition betrachtet. Die Forschung wählt drei einflussreiche Interpretationen dieser Art aus, um einen kritischen Zugang zum Prozess der Neuschaffung von "Tradition" im gegenwärtigen China zu finden. Die Interpretationen scheinen die Nachfrage und Erwartungen von Gesellschaft und Politik gleichermassen zu befriedigen und können daher als Linsen dienen, mittels derer wichtige soziale und politische Anliegen und Entwicklungen Chinas seit der Jahrtausendwende in Augenschein genommen werden können. (shrink)

This essay depicts the emergence of the notion of predetermined fate in early China by focusing on the changing meaning of the word ming 命. Many scholars have long interpreted the term ming in the Lunyu 論語 as a kind of inevitable fate, but I show that it is still subject to change depending on the will of an anthropomorphic Heaven. In the Warring States period, however, Heaven became increasingly conceived as following fixed patterns in its behavior, and the (...) growing belief in the validity of these patterns lead to the idea that the course of the future is more or less fixed and predictable. I argue that the idea of predetermined and predictable ming was a result of these changed conceptions of Heaven and the future. (shrink)

Some argue that animals and non-human figures in the Zhuangzi help displace the significance of humans. According to others the Zhuangzi suggests a certain time of ‘animalism,’ asking us to be more like various types of fauna and flora that do not share our self-centeredness. In this paper the use of non-human characters in the Zhuangzi will be examined through a survey of traditional Chinese commentary, comparisons with the Lunyu, and placing the use of non-human characters within the larger (...) context of the Zhuangzi. Thus we find that while anti-anthropocentric and animalistic perspectives can be philosophized with the Zhuangzi, the text itself is not overly concerned with these subjects. Animals and non-human characters are mainly allegorical or metaphorical, allowing the Zhuangzito 1) make broadly applicable arguments; 2) playfully discuss ideas that may be unappealing at first glance, and; 3) create a distance that allows the text to resist ossification. (shrink)

Confucian Reflections: Ancient Wisdom for Modern Times is about the early Chinese Confucian classic the "Analects" Lunyu , attributed to the founder of the Confucian tradition, Kongzi and who is more commonly referred to as "Confucius" in the West. Philip J. Ivanhoe argues that the Analects is as relevant and important today as it has proven to be over the course of its more than 2000 year history, not only for the people who live in East Asian societies but (...) for all human beings. The fact that this text has inspired so many talented people for so long, across a range of complex, creative, rich, and fascinating cultures offers a strong prima facie reason for thinking that the insights the Analects contains are not bound by either the particular time or cultural context in which the text took shape. (shrink)

This work is a thought experiment in re-interpreting the virtue of li or ritual/propriety for the contemporary, multi-cultural, world. Using Zhuangzi, the Lunyu, and Zhongyong as my primary points of departure, I re-interpret the Confucian ideas of hierarchy in terms of the Daoist conception of harmony. Many scholars today argue that Confucianism has a relational ontology, yet at the same time, we find that Confucian values can and do lead to rigid and harmful traditions that have historically oppressed marginalized (...) groups like women. As such, I re-imagine what li might look like if we take relational ontology seriously, Drawing from Zhuangzi, I argue that Confucian harmony and order do not necessarily arise out of hierarchy, and that harmony, the most primary goal of li and of the Confucian project, can be best attained through propriety that is influenced by Daoism and feminist values such as equality. (shrink)

In my dissertation, I investigate the development of the ethical theory of emotions in two ancient Chinese Confucian texts, Lúnyǔ (the Analects of Confucius) and Mèngzǐ (Mencius). Departing from much of the previous scholarship on ancient Chinese emotion, which has exclusively focused on the single Chinese term ‘qíng’ 情 (“emotion”), I closely analyze a number of Chinese terms for particular emotions in the textual and historical contexts of Lúnyǔ and Mèngzǐ. The leading question of my dissertation is what role emotions (...) (especially good emotions such as compassion) play in moral judgment, moral motivation, and moral cultivation for Confucius (551–479 B.C.E.) and Mencius (390–305 B.C.E.), and against the dominant theoretical positions in recent work on Chinese philosophy I argue that in the Mencius, 1) moral emotions provide an important but only partial basis for all-things-considered ethical judgment; 2) not only is the virtuous person in full control of his own desires, but his moral autonomy is not compromised even by his moral emotions; and 3) Mencius’ theory of emotional cultivation is significantly based on the inculcation of social values which are not originally embodied in moral emotions. (shrink)

With rapid growth in Far Eastern economies (in particular China’s), it is becoming imperative to understand the culturally driven ethical-value underpinnings of the management processes in this region of the world. In this study, we propose a broadened version of Hofstede’s and others’ conception of Confucian dynamics anchored in his teachings preserved in the Lunyu (or Analects), which form the foundation of individual-social moral interactions. Based on a content analysis of these Analects via a qualitative software, NVivo, we identified (...) six work-based values (Leadership Attributes, Appropriate Conduct, Authority Protocol, Governance Policies, Long term Orientation and Collegiality and Teamwork) and six life-based values (Virtuousness and Appropriate Behavior, Handling Life’s Emotions, Learning and Teaching, Parent/Elder Relationship, Friendship and Worship) of the society, prescribed by Confucius in his Analects. These factors are further analyzed and mapped in the context of the three Confucian ethical dimensions (Yi or Righteousness, Li or Propriety, and Ren or Benevolence and Unbounded). The business implications of the results and directions for future research are finally discussed. (shrink)

With rapid growth in Far Eastern economies, it is becoming imperative to understand the culturally driven ethical-value underpinnings of the management processes in this region of the world. In this study, we propose a broadened version of Hofstede’s and others’ conception of Confucian dynamics anchored in his teachings preserved in the Lunyu, which form the foundation of individual-social moral interactions. Based on a content analysis of these Analects via a qualitative software, NVivo, we identified six work-based values and six (...) life-based values of the society, prescribed by Confucius in his Analects. These factors are further analyzed and mapped in the context of the three Confucian ethical dimensions. The business implications of the results and directions for future research are finally discussed. (shrink)

The debate between Hans-Georg Gadamer and Jürgen Habermas provides a fresh perspective from which Confucian philosophy may be approached. In this paper, focusing on the Lunyu (Analects), I argue that the sayings of Confucius reflect an essentially 'conservative' orientation, finding in tradition a reservoir of insight and truth. There is a critical dimension to it in that ethical reflection and self-cultivation would enable the individual to challenge particular claims of tradition. However, can self-cultivation transcend tradition as a whole and (...) enable the individual to effect radical change? Following the strategy of Habermas' critique of Gadamer, what happens if tradition is systemically corrupt? In this discussion, rather than taking tradition generally I will focus on the concept of ritual (li) to suggest how the Lunyu seeks to crystallise the wisdom of the past into an ethical guide. The conclusion I draw is in the main a Gadamerian one. Committed to a critical appropriation of tradition, Confucian philosophy seeks ethical renewal from within, on the premise that through incremental change self-cultivation can make a real difference in the quest for moral excellence. (shrink)

A constructive interpretation of the Confucian conception of shame is offered here. Xunzi's discussion is considered the locus classicus of the Confucian conception of shame as contrasted with honor. In order to show his conception as an articulation and development of the more inchoate attitudes of Confucius and Mencius, and excursion is made into the Lunyu and the Mengzi. Aristotle's conception of shame is used as a sort of catalyst, an opening for appreciating Xunzi's complementary insights.