The significance of Chinese intellectual history for a better understanding of contemporary Chinese society : the ideological construction of “harmony” and its interpretations in mainland China and Taiwan

Rošker, Jana S. (author)

Through the lens of the contemporary ideologization of the classical philosophic term harmony (he 和), the present article deals with the question of the relation between the Chinese tradition on the one side, and contemporary Chinese society on the other. First, it introduces the contemporary interpretation of the notion of harmony and reveals the reasons for its integration into the current revitalization of Confucianism. Through the analysis of classical Confucian texts, it then shows that the current interpretation is not founded upon the proto-democratic elements of original Confucianism, but rather upon the autocratic and state-generating line of Confucianism that was developed by Xunzi, who represents a bridge between Confucianism and Legalism. Through the analysis and interpretation of the classical notion of harmony it then indicates that the interpreta-tions generated by the crucial representatives of the Taiwanese Modern Confucians are – in contrast to those developed on the mainland – following the much more egalitarian and democratic lines of classical Confucian philosophy that were elaborated by Men-cius. In the conclusion, the author reveals the significance of such differentiations in the context of evaluating the political and social systems of contemporary China. This significance is not merely limited to the recognition of autocratic elements within con-temporary Chinese ideology, but also manifests itself in new possibilities of revitalization and upgrading of such elements of the Chinese ideational tradition, that can help us to generate a new, specifically Chinese model of democracy.

• Language: English
• Keywords: harmony (philosophy), Confucianism, intellectual history, China, Taiwan
• Typology: 1.16 - Independent Scientific Component Part or a Chapter in a Monograph
• Organization: FF - Faculty of Arts
• Publication status: Published
• Publication version: Version of Record
• Year: 2025
• Number of pages: Str. 59-79
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-167270
• UDC: 221.7:316.32(510+529)
• COBISS.SI-ID: 225860867
• Publication date in RUL: 12.02.2025

Record is a part of a monograph

• Title: Foundations and futures : East Asian intellectual, political and linguistic landscapes
• Editors: Marko Ogrizek
• Place of publishing: Ljubljana
• Publisher: Založba Univerze, = University of Ljubljana Press
• Year: 2025
• ISBN: 978-961-297-482-4
• COBISS.SI-ID: 217930499
• Collection title: Zbirka Studia Humanitatis Asiatica
• Collection ISSN: 2463-8900

Licences

• License: CC BY-SA 4.0, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International
• Link: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/
• Description: This Creative Commons license is very similar to the regular Attribution license, but requires the release of all derivative works under this same license.

Secondary language

• Language: Slovenian
• Title: Pomen poznavanja kitajske idejne zgodovine za razumevanje sodobne kitajske družbe
• Keywords: harmonija (filozofija), konfucianizem, intelektualna zgodovina, Kitajska, Tajvan

Projects

• Funder: ARIS - Slovenian Research and Innovation Agency
• Project number: P6-0243
• Name: Azijski jeziki in kulture

• Funder: ARIS - Slovenian Research and Innovation Agency
• Project number: J6-50208
• Name: Novi teoretski pristopi k primerjalni transkulturni filozofiji in metoda sublacije