ICPM

Why many Chinese dislike Dalai Lama and think the independences of Tibet and Taiwan are intolerable? Why Chinese government could not deal with the State of Vatican City with a ‘smarter’ way in favor of Western media? Without a democratic government of Western type in China, why Chinese people still stand on the side of its government in a series of international conflicts between Chinese government and Western politicians and Western media in general? Moreover, why a non-democratic government in China could have achieved a great success in leading Chinese economic growth and social development and be welcome at least to certain degree by Chinese people right now? Why current Chinese government constantly claims the importance of socialism with ‘Chinese characteristics’ and takes ‘harmony’ as one of the highest values? What is the ‘essence’ of a series of conflicts between current China (including its people and its government) and the West (including Japan) in general? 

Aside from questions above, Westerners may also feel curious about the so-called ‘Chinese economic miracle’ and want to know more about the implications of Chinese modernization to the world. For example, some scholars discuss the so-called ‘multiple modernities’ and analyze the advantages of East Asian modernity in comparison to Western modernity. Some (like Wm. De Bary, Roger Ames, Tu Weiming, so on) even argue that Western conceptions of democracy and liberty could have been largely transformed in Confucian East Asia due to substantially different cultural traditions, believing that a ‘communitarian’ modernity in East Asia might have been a better choice than European-American modernities. Other related questions involve: at an age of globalization, what’s the significance of the patterns of Chinese culture, or in a broader sense, East Asian culture, considering the rise of China as a new global power? How to understand the success of Chinese and, in general, East Asian modernizations as the most dynamic region of sustained economic growth and political development since WWII, considering that they haven’t been achieved on basis of liberal traditions? 

This course is primarily oriented to ‘understanding the current China’ from historic-cultural-religious perspectives, its relevance to the world in coming future at an age of globalization. We will introduce the recent research achievements of cultural studies in relation to the patterns of Chinese culture, discussing the basic doctrines of Confucianism as the dominant part of traditional Chinese culture, and on basis of these, exploring how the national character of Chinese or East Asian people had been shaped, which might in turn determine an alternative modernity with Chinese characteristics. Our cultural-religious studies will situate a series of political-religious problems in a large contexts of modern China, helping students understand why so many political and ideological conflicts do happen between China and the West and how Chinese and Weterners misconceptionalize each other. 

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To provide the overseas student with a deeper understanding on Chinese history and culture for the sake of better knowing of the China's national condition. Through the Chinese history, students will be enhanced their viewpoints on many burning issues in China. Via understanding the Chinese culture including the confucianism taoism and Buddhism, Chinese ways of thinking, religion, life style, etc., students from the other countries of the world will be able to better perceive Chinese.

1）The students will gain a comprehensive understanding of the Chinese history throughout 4000 years.  
2）The students will gain a better understanding of the Chinese culture through comparisons with Western cultures.   
3）The students will learn the impact of Confucianism on Chinese society as well as its influences outside China.   
4）The students will understand the philosophical origins of the Chinese interpretation of modernity.  
5）The students will learn to analyze the current debates on modernity and developments in China from historical and cultural perspectives.

This is a general introduction of Chinese history and culture. About one third part of time will focus on Chinese history, including ancient history (3000BC-1840AD) and modern history (1840-present); one third part of time focuses on Chinese culture, talking about Confucianism, Chinese philosophy and religions, Chinese way of thinking, as well as Chinese way of life, etc. The last part will talk about the relationship between Chinese culture and Chinese modernity. 

Classroom Instruction

32 module hours

Reading List：

Basic Readings

1）Ebrey, Patricia Buckley, The Cambridge Illustrated History of China, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1996;  
 

2）Wm. Theodore de Bary，Asian Values and Human Rights: A Confucian Communitarian Perspective, Cambridge, Mass.Harvard University Press, 1998;

3）Herbert Fingarette, Confucius—the secular as sacred, New York: Harper & Row, publishers, 1972;  
4）Nisbett, Richard E., The Geography of Thought: How Asians and Westerners think differently….and why, New York, et al: Fress Press, 2003.  
5）(As for the exact readings with page numbers, please see course schedule)  
 

Further Readings

[Part I. Confucianism and the formation of Chinese culture]  
  Week 2-4:   
1）Ebrey, Patricia Buckley, The Cambridge Illustrated History of China, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1996;  
2）Fairbank, John King, China: A New History, Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press , 1992, pp.1-25, 46-71.  
3）Or any readings of the same topic which you could find.  
  Week 5. Chinese religions  
1）Xinzhong Yao, An Introduction to Confucianism, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000, pp. xiv-xviii, 1-9, 16-67;   
2）David R. Schiller, Confucius: Discussions / Conversations, or the Analects (Lun-yu), translation, commentary, interpretation, Saga Virtual Publishers, 2008: “Life of Confucius”;  
3）Chichung Huang, The Analects of Confucius (Lun Yu), a literal translation with an introduction and notes, New York and Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1997, pp.36-38(chronology);  
4）Karyn L. Lai, An Introduction to Chinese Philosophy, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2008, pp.1-18;  
  Week 6. Chinese philosophy and thoughts  
1）Karyn L. Lai, An Introduction to Chinese Philosophy, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2008, pp.19-34;   
2）Chichung Huang, The Analects of Confucius (Lun Yu), a literal translation with an introduction and notes, New York and Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1997, pp.14—35(Terms);  
3）Herbert Fingarette, Confucius—the secular as sacred, New York: Harper & Row, publishers, 1972, pp. 1-55;   
  Week 7. Chinese art and literature  
1）Confucius’s Analects: 1:5, 2:1, 2:19, 2:21, 3:19, 4:13, 11:24, 12:7, 12:11, 12:19, 12:22, 13:1-3, 13:16, 13:17, 15:5, 15:11, 15:33, 16:1;  
2）Mencius: 1A1-7; Or: Mencius, a new translation by W. A. C. H. Dobson, Chapter 1 (pp.3-37);   
 

3）Tu, Wei-ming, Way, Learning, and Politics: Essays on the Confucian intellectual, Albany, N. Y.: State Univerisity of New York, 1993, pp.1-12.

[Part II. The patterns of Chinese culture and Chinese way of life]  
  Patterns of Chinese culture: early studies (1)  
1）Alan Page Fiske, et al, “The Cultural Matrix of Social Psychology,”in Daniel T. Gilbert, Susan T. Fiske and Gardner Lindzey,eds.,The Handbook of Social Psychology, fourth edition,volume I, Boston, Mass.,etc.: the McGraw-Hill Companies,Inc., 1998, pp.915-919;  
2）Richard E. Nisbett, The Geography of Thought: How Asians and Westerners think differently….and why, New York, et al: Fress Press, 2003, pp.xiii-xxiii, 219-229.  
3）Geert H. Hofstede, Culture’s Consequences: International Differences in Work-related Values, abridged edition, Newbury Park, London, New Delhi: Sage publications, 1980/1984, pp.13-37  
  Patterns of Chinese culture: collectivism (2)  
1）Geert H. Hofstede, Culture’s Consequences: International Differences in Work-related Values, abridged edition, Newbury Park, London, New Delhi: Sage publications, 1980/1984, pp.148-175;  
2）Harry C. Triandis, Individualism & Collectivism, Boulder, Colorado: Westview Press, 1995, pp.1-15;  
3）Harry C. Triandis, et al, “Individualism and Collectivism: Cross Cultural Perspectives on Self-Ingroup Relationships,” Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, Vol. 54, No. 2, Feb. 1988, pp. 323-338.  
  Patterns of Chinese culture: guanxi-ism(3)  
 

Richard E. Nisbett, The Geography of Thought: How Asians and Westerners think differently….and why, New York: Free Press, 2003, pp.46-190.

[Part III  Chinese culture and Chinese modernity study]  
  Chinese culture and human right: obligations vs. rights  
1）Wm. Theodore de Bary，Asian Values and Huamn Rights: A Confucian Communitarian Perspective, Combridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1998, pp.1-16(‘Asian values and Confucianism’),30-40 (‘laws and rites’);118-133(Women’s education and women’s rights’);  
2）Daniel A. Bell, Beyond Liberal Democracy : Political Thinking for an East Asian Context, Princeton and Oxford: Princeton University Press, 2006, pp.52-83(human rights and ‘values in Asia’: reflections on East-West dialogues).  
  Chinese culture and liberty: virtue vs. freedom  
1）Wm. Theodore de Bary，Asian Values and Huamn Rights: A Confucian Communitarian Perspective, Combridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1998, pp.17-29(‘Individualism and personhood’) , 41-117, 134-157;;  
  Confucianism and democracy: meritocracy vs. democracy   
1）Shaohua Hu, “Confucianism and Western democracy,” Journal of Contemporary China, 6:15( Jul 1997), pp. 347-363;  
2）Francis Fukuyam, “Confucianism and Democracy,” Journal of Democracy, 6: 2 (1995), pp. 20-33.  
  Conclusions: Chinese modernity, its problems and its relevance  
1）Weiming Tu, “Implications of the Rise of ‘Confucian’ East Asia”, Daedalus: Journal of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, Winter 2000: “Multiple Modernities,” Volume 129, No.1，pp.195-218;  
2）_____. “Beyond the Enligtenment mentality: a Confucian perspective on ethics, migration, and global stewardship,” International Migration Review, Vol.30, No.1(Spring, 1996), pp.58-75.

• Syllabus(Fang)_An Introduction of Chinese History and Culture (Spring, 2016)