Sound Bite
Perhaps this is the old theory of "convergence" seen in a new light. Zhang, the first Chinese professor to recieve the honor of an appointment at Japan's Ritsumeikan Asia-Pacific University. A lifelong student of the classics of Asian culture, yet a modern man with an avid eye for what is new and Western-inspired, he takes a serious look at the underpinnings of some very different societies to see whether they are not, in fact, largely built on the same pillars.
About the Book
Scholars have analyzed Chinese society in the light of contemporary Western social and natural sciences for centuries. This compact volume turns the tables, and opens tantalizing new perspectives on the American civilization by examining it through the lens of ancient Confucianism. The current work invites Americans to step through the looking glass - backwards, this time - and view ourselves from a Confucian perspective. In his analysis, Zhang draws together references to the I Ching, Leibniz, Tocqueville, Lipset and Aristotle, a judicious few statistics such as crime rate and economic growth, and the lions of Chinese philosophy. Chapter 1. The American Civilization and Ancient Confucianism in Open Society Chapter 2. "All Men Are Created Equal" Versus All Men Are Born Equal Chapter 3. Democracy and Law Chapter 4. Education and Knowledge Chapter 5. Economic Freedom and Development Chapter 6. The American Universalism and Rational Civilizations in the Future
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