China: the middle way of the middle kingdom

World Political Theories
About the author
Title page
Copyright page
Acknowledgements
Introduction
	Message from China
	Overview
	How Chinese philosophers express themselves
One | Modernity before its time: the historical context of ‘classical’ Chinese political thought
	Historical background
	Similarities between China during the SAWS and Europe’s transition to modernity
	Nature and problems of modernity
	‘Classical’ Chinese political philosophy as modern philosophy
Two | The middle way of Confucianism: humanity as the new social glue
	Confucius and his school
	The need for a new social glue
	The cultivation of humanity: expanding circles and a universal yet unequal love
	Confucianism, familialism and relations between the private and the public
	Confucianism versus the nation-state
	The Confucian theory of just war and international peace
	Implications of Confucian ideas for environmentalism, animal rights and feminism
Three | The middle way of Confucianism: an equality-based mobile hierarchy
	Confucians’ understanding of the equality of human beings
	Legitimacy of the sovereignlies in satisfaction of the people’s interests
	The hierarchical side of Confucianism
	The Confucian hybrid regime
Four | Daoism: return to an age of innocence
	Difficulties in understanding the Lao Zi
	Why can’t taking action cure political ills?
	Naturalness and governing with no actions: distinctively Daoist ideas?
	The preference of the weak and the ‘really’ natural cycle
	Difficulties in returning to the natural cycle
	The ultimate answer: return to small and isolated states with few people
	Can we bring about ‘small states with few people’?
	Lessons for today
Five | The Legalists: builders of modern bureaucracy and institutions
	The life and deeds of Legalist Shang Yang
	The life of Han Fei Zi
	Han Fei Zi: the successor to the Lao Zi on natural laws
	The reality of human beings
	Ancients versus moderns
	The unreliability of familial care and the unresolvable conflict between private and public
	Truly virtuous people are useless at governing
	The teachings of the wise are applicable neither to the many nor to the few
	Han Fei Zi, Xun Zi and modern European thought
	The strength of a state and the five vermin
	A bureaucracy chosen on the basis of results
	The ideal ruler, governing with no (human) action
	Governing with uniform and strict laws
	Do not govern on the basis of personal preferences or human criteria
	The ideal ruler: embodying the Way and being selfless
	Correct the non-ideal ruler and maintain his supreme authority: a conflict?
	The righteous, solitary and indignant man
Six | Later developments: the middle way
	The successes and failures of the Qin dynasty and of Han Fei Zi’s teachings
	The hybrid regime: laws and institutions with a Confucian foundation
	Confucian attempts to check the ruler
	Selection of the worthy
	Centralization of power versus local autonomy
	Bad blends of Legalism and Confucianism
	China: an authoritarian state?
Conclusion | The contemporary relevance of traditional Chinese political philosophy
	Understanding modernity
	The Confucian middle way: compassion and the hybrid regime
	Limits of humans
	Han Fei Zi and modernity
	Competition and convergence
Notes
References
Index
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