Description
Book SynopsisThis engaging work of comparative philosophy brings together American pragmatism and Chinese philosophy in a way that generates new interpretations of Chinese philosophy and a fresh perspective on issues in process philosophy. Through an analysis of key terms, Haiming Wen argues that Chinese philosophical terminology is not simply a retrospective language that through a process of stipulation promises us knowledge of an existing world, but is also an open, prospective vocabulary that through productive associations allows philosophers to realize a desired world. Relying on this productive power of Chinese terminology, Wen introduces a new term: ''Confucian pragmatism.'' Wen convincingly shows that although there is much that distinguishes American pragmatism from Confucian philosophy, there is enough conceptual overlap to make Confucian pragmatism a viable and exciting field of study.
Trade ReviewIn this far-reaching and nuanced work, Wen Haiming juxtaposes Chinese philosophy with the American traditions of pragmatic naturalism and process philosophy….this work is simultaneously a piece of critical scholarship and an original contribution to Chinese and comparative philosophy…. In short, the moment to inaugurate a "newborn Chinese philosophical narrative" has arrived (219). This book serves as both an invitation and a rich, suggestive beginning to that project. * Dao: A Journal of Comparative Philosophy, (Published By Springe *
Haiming Wen has provided a lucid and perceptive discussion of the creative dimension of the Confucian tradition by correlating American pragmatism and Chinese thinking. The book is an outstanding contribuiton to comparative philosophy. -- Jiyuan Yu, State University of New York at Buffalo
The publication of Haiming Wen's new book, Confucian Pragmatism as the Art of Contextualizing Personal Experience and the World, is a major contribution to Confucian scholarship....the book brings an entirely fresh and promising new look to Confucian material.
Table of ContentsChapter 1 1. The Crisis of Creativity Chapter 2 2. Getting Past the Eclipse of Creativity: Acknowledging the Philosophical Fallacy Chapter 3 3. Intentionality/Meaning (yi) and Confucian Contextual Creativity Chapter 4 4. Feelings (qing) and the Importance of History, Particularity, and Emergence in Context Chapter 5 5. The Contextual Creativity of Key Philosophical Terms Chapter 6 6. Chinese Philosophical Sensibility Chapter 7 7. Chinese Metaphysical Creativity Chapter 8 8. Chinese Epistemological Creativity: Thinking-and-Feeling (Mind) and Experience Chapter 9 9. Confucian Pragmatism as a Post-Modern Comparative Philosophy
