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"Confucianism is making a comeback. Cultural conservatives will rejoice. But so should political progressives. With his usual insight, balance, and historically informed normative theorizing, Stephen Angle shows that new interpretations of traditional Confucian values such as hierarchy, deference, and ritual can and should challenge oppressive social practices. This original book is both counter-intuitive and persuasive."
Daniel A. Bell, Jiaotong University, Shanghai and Tsinghua University, Beijing
"Stephen Angle is one of the most well-informed and actively engaged political philosophers seeking to bring the Confucian tradition into productive dialogue as a full and equal partner with the contemporary West in a mutually edifying endeavor he calls global philosophy. His command of the works of Chinese thinkers such as Mou Zongsan is most impressive and clearly displayed in this latest work."
Philip J. Ivanhoe, City University of Hong Kong
"Stephen Angle provides an accessible reconstruction of the political philosophy of Mou Zongsan, an important contemporary Confucian philosopher highly influential in the philosophical circles of Taiwan and Hong Kong. This book opens the door to contemporary developments of Confucianism in China and Taiwan."
JeeLoo Liu, California State University, Fullerton
“Confucianism is making a comeback. Cultural conservatives will rejoice. But so should political progressives. With his usual insight, balance, and historically informed normative theorizing, Stephen Angle shows that new interpretations of traditional Confucian values such as hierarchy, deference, and ritual can and should challenge oppressive social practices. This original book is both counter-intuitive and persuasive.”
Daniel A. Bell, Jiaotong University, Shanghai and Tsinghua University, Beijing
“Stephen Angle is one of the most well-informed and actively engaged political philosophers seeking to bring the Confucian tradition into productive dialogue as a full and equal partner with the contemporary West in a mutually edifying endeavor he calls global philosophy. His command of the works of Chinese thinkers such as Mou Zongsan is most impressive and clearly displayed in this latest work.”
Philip J. Ivanhoe, City University of Hong Kong
“Stephen Angle provides an accessible reconstruction of the political philosophy of Mou Zongsan, an important contemporary Confucian philosopher highly influential in the philosophical circles of Taiwan and Hong Kong. This book opens the door to contemporary developments of Confucianism in China and Taiwan.”
JeeLoo Liu, California State University, Fullerton
Preface page vii
1 Introduction: Contextualizing Progressive Confucianism 1
2 Self-Restriction: The Indirect Link Between Ethics and Politics 24
3 Rethinking Authority and Rejecting Authoritarianism: Giving the People their Voice 36
4 Debating the Rule of Law and Virtue Politics: Zhang Shizhao, Mou Zongsan, and Today 58
5 The Rights of All Under Heaven: Human Rights and Contemporary Confucianism 74
6 Neither Ethics nor Law: Ritual Propriety as Confucian Civility 91
7 Virtue, Politics, and Social Criticism: Toward Deference without Oppression 111
8 Conclusion: The Shape of Confucian Virtue-Ritual-Politics 136
Notes 147
Bibliography 180
Index and Glossary of Chinese Terms 194
Stephen C. Angle is professor of philosophy at Wesleyan University.
