Forgiveness plays a main role in transitional justice, it is important to verify how forgiveness is justified by contemporary societies. No contemporary mentality can avoid the intuition that we are facing a reality t...Forgiveness plays a main role in transitional justice, it is important to verify how forgiveness is justified by contemporary societies. No contemporary mentality can avoid the intuition that we are facing a reality that seems to belong to the field of religion. Hence, what interests us is precisely the moral consideration of this discussion. Facing the morality of forgiveness, the questions that are raised with respect to each type are： whether it is possible to forgive and whether one should forgive. The inherent contradiction of those who affirm the obligatory nature of forgiveness results in the supererogatory character of forgiveness. If all forgiveness is supererogatory in itself, then all forgiveness is always presented as something undeserved. Thus, we do not have supporting points to embark on a discourse about forgiveness. The result is that our political communities do not really know how to manage situations such as transitional justice.展开更多
This article explains how modern European travelers, particularly European women adventurers, described East Asia. Travel writings that are expected to be truthful are not free from travelers＇ own personal, cultural,...This article explains how modern European travelers, particularly European women adventurers, described East Asia. Travel writings that are expected to be truthful are not free from travelers＇ own personal, cultural, social, and political experiences and perceptions. At the turn of the 19th century, Europe was dominated by colonial discourse based on Western-centered textualized or imaginary knowledge of ＂the Orient＇＇1. The imaginary texts affected European travelers. In turn, their travel writings helped substantiate and reinforce the texts. European women travelers, who were in a relatively disadvantageous situation at home, enjoyed going beyond the sexual boundaries imposed on them at home by using their assumed racial superiority in the Orient. However, their marginal position in Western society helped them ponder their own understanding of other peoples and cultures, of themselves, and of their home societies. This article traces not only the surface discourse of travelogues on East Asia, particularly on Korea, but also travel writers＇ inner worlds, focusing on differences between men and women.展开更多
There are two mistaken tendencies in the development of a Chinese literary discourse in academia. One is the ＂red dancing shoes＂ phenomenon, where scholars run helter- skelter after the latest developments in Wester...There are two mistaken tendencies in the development of a Chinese literary discourse in academia. One is the ＂red dancing shoes＂ phenomenon, where scholars run helter- skelter after the latest developments in Western literary theory; the other is the ＂bound feet＂ phenomenon, where tradition-bound scholars believe that tradition must be kept unchanged and that Chinese literary theory should be cleansed of all alien elements. Neither approach is desirable. Contemporary Chinese literary theory should be grounded in present realities and should distinguish between substance and function. ＂Substance＂ has to consist of China＇s present literary creation and critical practice; only thus can we appropriate Western and traditional Chinese literary theories in the service of today＇s needs, and make the ancient serve the modern and the foreign the Chinese. This will enable us to develop a literary discourse that is both contemporary and Chinese.展开更多
This article traces early Chinese-Western contexts in the field of linguistics. Three groups of sources are distinguished： （1） sources on Mandarin written in China after the late sixteenth century, （2） sources on...This article traces early Chinese-Western contexts in the field of linguistics. Three groups of sources are distinguished： （1） sources on Mandarin written in China after the late sixteenth century, （2） sources on Min dialects written in the Philippines after the early seventeenth century, and（3 ） sources on Southern dialects written by Protestant missionaries in China after the middle of the nineteenth century. The focus of the paper lies on the second group, which has thus far received the least attention in research. It is concluded that the significance of early linguistic sources goes beyond historical language research. The comparison of linguistic meta-language also allows for conclusions on the exchange of ideas and concepts between Asia and Europe in the seventeenth century.展开更多
As their attempt to assert the strength and uniqueness of traditional Chinese culture in comparison with Western culture, to transform Confucianism by creatively responding to and reinterpreting Western religious conc...As their attempt to assert the strength and uniqueness of traditional Chinese culture in comparison with Western culture, to transform Confucianism by creatively responding to and reinterpreting Western religious concepts from Confucian perspective, as well as to contribute to inter-religious dialogue, contemporary New Confucians 新儒家 have asserted the transcendence, religiousness and moral metaphysics of Confucianism. The New Confucians have also perceived the spiritual problems of modern people and suggested to deal with them by linking humans with the transcendent Heaven. In this article, I will analyse and evaluate the New Confucians＇ arguments on Confucian ＂immanent transcendence＂ 内在超越. I will argue that they are the bases of the New Confucians＇ arguments on the religiousness of Confucianism, as well as their perception of Confucianism as a moral metaphysics and the solution to the problems of modernity.展开更多
文摘Forgiveness plays a main role in transitional justice, it is important to verify how forgiveness is justified by contemporary societies. No contemporary mentality can avoid the intuition that we are facing a reality that seems to belong to the field of religion. Hence, what interests us is precisely the moral consideration of this discussion. Facing the morality of forgiveness, the questions that are raised with respect to each type are： whether it is possible to forgive and whether one should forgive. The inherent contradiction of those who affirm the obligatory nature of forgiveness results in the supererogatory character of forgiveness. If all forgiveness is supererogatory in itself, then all forgiveness is always presented as something undeserved. Thus, we do not have supporting points to embark on a discourse about forgiveness. The result is that our political communities do not really know how to manage situations such as transitional justice.
文摘This article explains how modern European travelers, particularly European women adventurers, described East Asia. Travel writings that are expected to be truthful are not free from travelers＇ own personal, cultural, social, and political experiences and perceptions. At the turn of the 19th century, Europe was dominated by colonial discourse based on Western-centered textualized or imaginary knowledge of ＂the Orient＇＇1. The imaginary texts affected European travelers. In turn, their travel writings helped substantiate and reinforce the texts. European women travelers, who were in a relatively disadvantageous situation at home, enjoyed going beyond the sexual boundaries imposed on them at home by using their assumed racial superiority in the Orient. However, their marginal position in Western society helped them ponder their own understanding of other peoples and cultures, of themselves, and of their home societies. This article traces not only the surface discourse of travelogues on East Asia, particularly on Korea, but also travel writers＇ inner worlds, focusing on differences between men and women.
文摘There are two mistaken tendencies in the development of a Chinese literary discourse in academia. One is the ＂red dancing shoes＂ phenomenon, where scholars run helter- skelter after the latest developments in Western literary theory; the other is the ＂bound feet＂ phenomenon, where tradition-bound scholars believe that tradition must be kept unchanged and that Chinese literary theory should be cleansed of all alien elements. Neither approach is desirable. Contemporary Chinese literary theory should be grounded in present realities and should distinguish between substance and function. ＂Substance＂ has to consist of China＇s present literary creation and critical practice; only thus can we appropriate Western and traditional Chinese literary theories in the service of today＇s needs, and make the ancient serve the modern and the foreign the Chinese. This will enable us to develop a literary discourse that is both contemporary and Chinese.
文摘This article traces early Chinese-Western contexts in the field of linguistics. Three groups of sources are distinguished： （1） sources on Mandarin written in China after the late sixteenth century, （2） sources on Min dialects written in the Philippines after the early seventeenth century, and（3 ） sources on Southern dialects written by Protestant missionaries in China after the middle of the nineteenth century. The focus of the paper lies on the second group, which has thus far received the least attention in research. It is concluded that the significance of early linguistic sources goes beyond historical language research. The comparison of linguistic meta-language also allows for conclusions on the exchange of ideas and concepts between Asia and Europe in the seventeenth century.
文摘As their attempt to assert the strength and uniqueness of traditional Chinese culture in comparison with Western culture, to transform Confucianism by creatively responding to and reinterpreting Western religious concepts from Confucian perspective, as well as to contribute to inter-religious dialogue, contemporary New Confucians 新儒家 have asserted the transcendence, religiousness and moral metaphysics of Confucianism. The New Confucians have also perceived the spiritual problems of modern people and suggested to deal with them by linking humans with the transcendent Heaven. In this article, I will analyse and evaluate the New Confucians＇ arguments on Confucian ＂immanent transcendence＂ 内在超越. I will argue that they are the bases of the New Confucians＇ arguments on the religiousness of Confucianism, as well as their perception of Confucianism as a moral metaphysics and the solution to the problems of modernity.
