A Daoist Theory of Chinese Thought A Philosophical Interpretation [Paperback]

This ambitious book presents a new interpretation of Chinese thought guided both by a philosopher's sense of mystery and by a sound philosophical theory of meaning. That dual goal, Hansen argues, requires a unified translation theory. It must provide a single coherent account of the issues that motivated both the recently untangled Chinese linguistic analysis and the familiar moral-political disputes. Hansen's unified approach uncovers a philosophical sophistication in Daoism that traditional accounts have overlooked.

1. An Introduction with Work to Do
2. The Context of Chinese Philosophy: Language and Theory of Language
Part I The Positive Dao Period
3. Confucius: The Baseline
4. Mozi: Setting the Philosophical Agenda
Part II The Antilanguage Period
5. Mencius: The Establishment Strikes Back
6. Laozi: Language and Society
Part III The Analytic Period
7. The School of Names: Linguistic Analysis in China
8. Zhuangzi: Discriminating about Discriminating
Part IV The Authoritarian Response
9. Xunzi: Pragmatic Confucianism
10. Han Feizi: The Ruler's Interpretation
Notes
Glossary of Chinese Characters
Bibliography
Index

Hansen contributes a much-needed re-assessment of Chinese philosophy....Hansen is refreshingly revisionist as his hermeneutic lays waste to such misconceptions as THE Tao, transcendence, and unsayableness associated with dao-ism, as well as fundamental misconceptions about Chinese language and thought....His twin fortes are an almost surgical, positivist linguistic precision, cutting away at fat and exposing the bare bones, plus a holistic approach....Overall, the author's polysemous grasp of Chinese history makes his magnum opus an interdisciplinary resource, sure to be of interest to all students and scholars of comparative literature, philosophy/religion, and intellectual history. --