4. Open Season: the Historical Context

Posted on

The historical context of classical Chinese philosophy, and how ancient Chinese historical works themselves became works of philosophy.

download-icon
.

Themes:

Further Reading

• S. Durrant, W. Li, and D. Schaberg (trans.), The Zuo Tradition/Zuozhuan Reader: Selections from China’s Earliest Narrative History (Seattle: 2020).

• H. Miller (trans.), The Gongyang Commentary on the Spring and Autumn Annals (New York: 2015).

• J.S. Major and C.A. Cook, Ancient China: a History (Milton: 2016).

• M.E. Lewis, The Construction of Space in Early China (Albany: 2005).

• M.E. Lewis, The Early Chinese Empires, Qin and Han (Cambridge MA: 2010).  

• M. Loewe (ed.), The Cambridge History of Ancient China: from the Origins of Civilization to 221 BC (Cambridge: 1999).

• M. Pu, Daily Life in Ancient China (Cambridge: 2018).

• E.L. Shaughnessy, A Brief History of Ancient China (London: 2023).

• N.A. Van Auken, Spring and Autumn Historiography: Form and Hierarchy in Ancient Chinese Annals (New York: 2023).

Comments

dukeofethereal on 21 April 2024

New theme for 'Historical Context'

I just came across a new theme via this episode called 'Historical context', I'll give you a hand on some episodes that can benefit from this theme.

 

https://www.historyofphilosophy.net/introduction-indian-philosophy

 

https://www.historyofphilosophy.net/vedic

 

https://www.historyofphilosophy.net/after-dignaga

 

https://www.historyofphilosophy.net/india-history-patrick

 

https://www.historyofphilosophy.net/buddhism-jainism-introduction

 

https://www.historyofphilosophy.net/india-greece

 

https://www.historyofphilosophy.net/india-islam-europe

 

https://www.historyofphilosophy.net/condemnations

 

 

https://www.historyofphilosophy.net/hellenistic-schools

 

https://www.historyofphilosophy.net/plato-life

 

https://www.historyofphilosophy.net/aristotle-life-works

 

https://www.historyofphilosophy.net/plotinus-life

 

https://www.historyofphilosophy.net/anselm

 

https://www.historyofphilosophy.net/haitian-revolution

 

https://www.historyofphilosophy.net/machiavelli-skinner

 

https://www.historyofphilosophy.net/renaissance-science-daston

 

https://www.historyofphilosophy.net/skepticism-lagerlund

 

https://www.historyofphilosophy.net/scholasticism-normore

 

https://www.historyofphilosophy.net/rampling-alchemy

 

https://www.historyofphilosophy.net/byzantium-islam-herrin

 

https://www.historyofphilosophy.net/iconoclasm

 

https://www.historyofphilosophy.net/byzantine-commentaries-ierodiakonou

 

https://www.historyofphilosophy.net/manuscripts-primavesi

 

https://www.historyofphilosophy.net/byzantium-islam

 

https://www.historyofphilosophy.net/science-palaiologan-renaissance

 

https://www.historyofphilosophy.net/later-orthodox

 

https://www.historyofphilosophy.net/trizio-byzantine-latin-medieval

 

 

 

 

In reply to by dukeofethereal

Peter Adamson on 21 April 2024

New theme

Thanks! I was adding them earlier today and realized that there must be a lot that I had missed. I was thinking that this theme would really be for episodes where historical context is more or less the main point, so I might not add all of those but you are right about some of them (e.g. iconoclasm).

Jan on 22 April 2024

Classification of people in relation to custom

Where can i find the Xunzi (?) classification of people in relation to custom you mention around minute 8.

In reply to by Jan

Peter Adamson on 22 April 2024

Xunzi passage

Here you go: X.Q. Wang 王先謙 (compiler), Xunzi jijie 荀子集解, 3 vols. (Shanghai: Sao ye shan fang上海掃葉山房; 1926), quoted at M.E. Lewis, The Construction of Space in Early China (Albany: 2005), 198.

In reply to by Peter Adamson

Jan on 23 April 2024

Re: Xunzi passage

Thank you! I was particularly wondering about the models vocabulary and the "100 models", which are missing from the quoted passage.

I found a reference to the "100 models" in Knoblok, p. 206:
"Of the sources of ritual principles, none is more important than the sage kings. But one asks: There are a
hundred sage kings, which one ought I to use as my model?"

But in this passage the models seem exclusive and not to be followed together.

dukeofethereal on 3 May 2024

Recommending two excellent Chinese History podcasts!

Hi, Peter i would like to recommend two excellent podcasts, one is a long running series that started back in 2010, called the 'China History Podcast', by Laszlo Montgomery it covers episodes in themes and not chronological from History of Taiwan, to History of Tea, Philosophy, poetry, Ethnic minorities, etc...

 

One of my top 5 favourite over the last decade or so alongside yours and History of England podcast (David Crowther).

 

Here is the website for it https://teacup.media/

Also the 2nd Podcast is a recent podcast which covers interviews with scholars on various topics of Chinese History, 18 episodes so far and the bulk of the episodes are time periods you are not covering (Post Han Period but several centuries after Han period, we're talking Ming/Qing period).

 

https://www.chinesehistorypodcast.com/

 

 

You might enjoy these two particular episodes although covering topics from Ming/Qing era

https://www.chinesehistorypodcast.com/e/wang-yangming-and-the-school-of-mind-an-interview-with-professor-israel/

 

https://www.chinesehistorypodcast.com/e/cultural-production-in-the-ming-qing-transition-a-conversation-with-professor-lynn-struve/

 

 

Add new comment

The content of this field is kept private and will not be shown publicly.