Following His Own Path , livre ebook

Following His Own Path
SUNY series, Translating China

Roger T. Ames and Paul J. D’Ambrosio, editors
Following His Own Path
Li Zehou and Contemporary Chinese Philosophy
JANA S. ROŠKER
Cover photo: Li Zehou, Autumn 1979, Beijing China. Photograph by Yu Jian. © Li Zehou.
Published by State University of New York Press, Albany
© 2019 State University of New York
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Rošker, Jana, 1960– author.
Title: Following his own path : Li Zehou and contemporary Chinese philosophy / Jana S. Rošker.
Description: Albany : State University of New York, [2019] | Series: SUNY series. Translating China | Includes bibliographical references and indexes.
Identifiers: LCCN 2018000362 | ISBN 9781438472478 (hardcover : alk. paper) | ISBN 9781438472485 (ebook)
Subjects: LCSH: Li, Zehou. | Philosophy, Chinese—20th century. | Philosophy, Chinese—21st century.
Classification: LCC B5234.L4874 R67 2018 | DDC 181/.11—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2018000362
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
自反而縮, 雖千萬人, 吾往矣
If I reflect on myself and ascertain that I am upright, I will continue to follow my way against thousands and tens of thousands (Mengzi, Gongsun Chou I: 2.6)
Contents
Acknowledgments
Notes on References, Bibliography, and Translation
Introduction
1. Li Zehou and His Time
2. Central Concepts
3. Upgrading and Modernizing Traditional Chinese Philosophy
4. Exploring the Beauty of Humanity
5. General Evaluation and Impact
Appendix: General Scheme of Ethics (Lunlixue zong lanbiao 倫理學總覽表 )
Notes
Bibliography
Glossary of Specific Terms, Phrases, and Titles (Chinese-English)
Index of Proper Names
Acknowledgments
The assistance of numerous individuals and institutions contributed to the accomplishment of this work. First of all, I would like to express my gratitude to Professor Li Zehou, simply because without him, this book would never be possible. His broad wisdom, his insightful inventiveness and exhilarating theories were always a precious source of incentive, making the writing of this book on his philosophical system for me a wonderful and exciting journey through the labyrinths of his fascinating thought.
I am very grateful to the faculty of arts at Ljubljana University and to all the colleagues from the Department for Asian Studies for their support of my efforts in writing this book and for providing all the necessary facilities that we all too often take for granted. My research in Taiwan and China, where I could obtain most of the important sources and secondary material, were supported by the Slovenian Research Agency (ARRS, research program P6—0243), the Center for Chinese Studies at the National Central Library in Taipei, and the Deng Delong grant. I am also grateful to the Department of Philosophy at the National Taiwan University in Taipei for allowing me the opportunity to do research in their library as a visiting scholar. All these activities enabled me to exchange ideas with many other scholars working in the field of Chinese philosophy, which benefited my study enormously.
I appreciate the help and support of many friends and colleagues, from whom I have drawn a lot of warmth, stimulation, and professional, as well as personal assistances. I am immensely grateful for their constant support and stimulating conversations, which have been the most exquisite springs of my inspiration. I would like to thank (in alphabetical order of their surnames) Andrej Bekeš, Bart Dessein, Raoul David Findeisen, Guo Qiyong, Fabian Heubel, Huang Chun-chieh, Lee Hsien-chung, Lee Ming-huei, Lin Ming-chao, Lin Yue-huei, Karl-Heinz Pohl, Geir Sigurðsson, Wang Hui, Nataša Vampelj Suhadolnik, Maja Veselič, Wu Xiaoming, Igor Ž. Žagar, and many others. Karyn Lai, Andrej Ule, and Kai Marchal have read different sections of the manuscript before the final submission, and provided valuable comments. I would also like to thank the two anonymous reviewers for their timely, diligent, thorough, as well as extremely attentive work. I am very grateful for their insightful remarks, which have helped me to substantially improve the manuscript.
My very special appreciation goes to Roger T. Ames for his interest in my book, and especially his trust, care and wisdom. I would also like to thank him and Peter Hershock for their readiness to include this book into the new series they are editing, and for all the supporting efforts they have put into its production. This book owes much to Christopher Ahn for his wonderful editorial guidance, his constant availability, and his professional help.
I am also very grateful to Klara Hrvatin for helping me with the editing and formatting of the manuscript and preparing the glossary and bibliography before the final submission. My earnest appreciation also goes to Mai Shaikhanuar-Cota, who took the time to proofread it and who helped me to iron out many mistakes, both stylistically and grammatically.
Most of all, I wish to tell my partner Téa Sernelj how grateful I am for her unceasing love, involvement, and support. My sons Janko and Nils are also a great comfort to me with their warm chats and unfailing encouragement, which has always sparkled my mind’s eye.
Notes on References, Bibliography, and Translation
Because of the small number of Chinese family names, the reference style of this book does not follow the common Western styles. In addition to their surnames, the given names of Chinese authors are included in the references (for instance, Hu Weixi 2002, 14 instead of Hu 2002, 14). To distinguish between sources that have been published by Chinese authors in English and the ones that have been published in Chinese by the same authors, the first and last names of the authors of Chinese material will not be separated by a comma. In contrast, in references to their works written and published in English or other Indo-European languages their surnames will be followed by a comma. For example: a reference to Li Zehou’s article written in English: Li, Zehou 1999, “Subjectivity and ‘Subjectality’: A Response,” Philosophy East and West 49(2): 174–83, the source is cited within text as (Li, Zehou 1999). His work in Chinese: Li Zehou 李澤厚 1999, Zhongguo sixiang shilun 中國思想史論 (On Chinese Intellectual History), Hefei: Anhui wenyi chuban she is cited within text as (Li Zehou 1999). Such specific conventions do not apply to sources written by non-Chinese authors.
Unless otherwise indicated, all translations from classical and modern Chinese contained in this book are my own.
Introduction
Li Zehou is undoubtedly one of the most distinguished, significant, and influential Chinese philosophers of our time and one of the rare Chinese intellectuals whose work acquired broad readership outside of China. Since the late 1970s, Li has propelled a number of views that have had a deep and lasting impact on Chinese intellectuals. Even his critics acknowledge his scholarly influence and academic accomplishments (Ding 2002, 246). Because Li belongs to a group of exiled intellectuals, his contribution towards contemporary Chinese thought and culture is rather complex. The same holds true for his brand of philosophy, which has been variously characterized as “neo-traditional,” “neo-Kantian,” “post-Marxist,” “Marxist-Confucian,” “pragmatist,” “instrumentalist,” “romantic,” and more. Despite this complexity, which cannot be reduced to any dominant philosophical categories or currents, he doubtless belongs to the most significant modern scholars of Chinese history and culture, especially considering the fact that his work was central to the Chinese Enlightenment ( qimeng 啟蒙 ) of the 1980s. 1
Even though Li deals with complex philosophical ideas, he is able to express them in multifaceted texts, successfully combining logical analyses with narrative and emotive elements. His philosophy has helped modify and transform antiquated patterns of Chinese intellectual discourses. His innovative, imaginative, and unique approach to a wide range of basic theoretical problems, grounded in solid arguments and analyses, has created new styles of intellectual investigation into the post-Mao period and presented a new challenge to the tedious and monotonous theories delivered by the official Party ideologists. Li’s ambition to fill “old bottles with new wine” often took the form of a reversal or inversion of words or phrases that were central to his philosophical endeavors. Three key phrases warrant mention.
1. The most famous example is his reversal of the nineteenth-century slogan “(preserving) Chinese substance and (applying) Western functions,” which became “(assuming) Western substance and (applying) Chinese functions” (from Zhongti Xiyong 中體西用 to Xiti Zhongyong 西體中用 ).
2. Li likewise inverted Lin Yusheng’s “creative transformation” to “transformative creation” (from chuangzaoxingde zhuanhua 創造性的轉化 to zhuanhuaxingde chuangzao 轉化性的 創造 ).
3. Finally, he gave new meaning to Marx’s vision of a non-alienated relation between men and nature,—the “humanization of nature,” by complementing it with the reversed phrase “naturalization of humans” (from zirande renhua 自然的人化 to rende ziranhua 人的自然化 ).
During the creative urgency of this period, when it seemed that aesthetics offered the most effective redemption from the difficult experiences of the Cultural Revolution, Li offered young Chinese people new, exceptionally creative interpretations of art, phi