HY2003 Chinese Philosophy
Course Details
Time: Wednesdays 2.30-5.30pm
Location: HSS Seminar Room 7
Instructors:
Winnie SUNG
Office: HSS 06-08
Email: [email protected]
Office hours: Thursdays 1-2pm or by appointment
SUN Qingjuan
Office venue: TBA
Email: [email protected]
Office hours: Wednesdays 1-2pm or by appointment
Course Description
This is a co-taught course. The first half of the course (before reading week) will be taught by
Winnie SUNG and the second half by SUN Qingjuan. This is an introductory course to the key
figures in Chinese philosophy and their intellectual traditions, including Confucianism, Daoism,
Mohism, Legalism, Buddhism, Neo-Confucianism, and Contemporary Chinese Philosophy. The
course is organised around thinkers, rather than topics or traditions. The objective of this course is
to give you a better idea of the historical development of ideas in each of the traditions and the
influences these thinkers have on one another. More emphasis will be put on the pre-Qin, since it is
a period of time when major ideas and concepts in Chinese Philosophy originated. Throughout the
course, we will explore some of the fundamental philosophical issues raised by early Chinese
thinkers (e.g. reality, knowledge, moral cultivation, and the good life) from the perspective of
thinkers as well as from our perspective that is informed by contemporary concerns.
Method of Evaluation
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Class participation 5%
Comments and questions 10%
Short essay 20% (Sep 16)
Short essay 25% (Oct 28)
Final term paper 40% (Nov 21)
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Class Participation
Students are expected to attend and participate actively in the lectures and group discussions.
Comments and Questions
After the second lecture, students should start writing comments and questions on the assigned
readings. Comments can be very brief (about 150 words) along with one or two questions you
would like to raise.
You are required to submit at least five comments. You cannot submit all five comments at once.
The comment has to correspond to the weekly readings and be sent to the instructors before class
Wednesdays at 12pm. The comments will be graded collectively at the end of the course so that your
grade reflects the progress you have made in the course.
It is important to show in your comments that you are following the course and that you are
thinking through the materials and have questions to ask. The objectives of this assessment are to
help you stay on track with the course and to develop your critical thinking skills.
Essays
There will be two short essays (around 1200 and 2000 words) and one long final essay (around 3000
words).
Essay topics will be announced when it gets closer to due dates. Late essays without the instructor’s
approval for extension will incur 3% penalty of the maximum marks available for that assignment
per day late. Weekend will count as two days. No mark will be allocated if the essay is submitted
later than 14 days.
Extension may be granted for documented medical reasons or special circumstances. Should there
be any circumstances that may affect or have affected your work during the term, please notify the
instructor as soon as possible.
Plagiarism is strictly forbidden. All students are required to generate Turnitin reports of their
submitted essays.
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Course Schedule
Week
Lecture Topics
1 Aug 10
Introduction
2 Aug 17
Confucianism:
Confucius
3 Aug 24
Daoism: Laozi
4 Aug 31
Mohism: Mozi
5 Sep 07
Confucianism:
Mengzi
6 Sep 14
Daoism: Zhuangzi
7 Sep 21
Confucianism:
Xunzi
8 Oct 5
Legalism
9 Oct 12
Buddhism
10 Oct 19
Neo-Confucianism
11 Oct 26
Neo-Confucianism
12 Nov 02
Contemporary
Chinese Philosophy
13 Nov 09
Insights from
Chinese Philosophy
Nov 21
Readings
Remarks
Lai, pp. 1-4; “Chapter 10”
#3 “Introduction,” pp. 1-25
Selections from Yijing and Shijing
Lai, “Chapter 2”
Selections from primary texts
Lai, “Chapter 6”
Selections from primary texts
Lai, “Chapter 4”
Selections from primary texts
Lai, “Chapter 3,” pp. 35-40
Selections from primary texts
Lai, “Chapter 8”
Short essay due Sep 16
Selections from primary texts
Lai, “Chapter 3,” pp. 40-54
Selections from primary texts
Recess
Lai, “Chapter 9”
Selections from primary texts
Lai, “Chapter 11”
Selections from primary texts
#4 “Chapter 2,” pp. 96-115
Selections from primary texts
#4 “Chapter 2,” pp. 96-115
Short essay due on Oct 28
Selections from primary texts
#1 “Introduction,” pp.1-14
#1 “Chapter 15,” pp. 305-206
Selections from primary texts
Lai, “Chapter 1”
#2
Final Essay
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Resources
Primary Textbook
Lai, Karyn. 2008. An Introduction to Chinese Philosophy. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
(There is a reserved copy at the HSS library. There are also copies available for sale at the bookstore
on campus.)
We use the Pinyin system for the phonetic transcription of Chinese terms. Some of your readings
use Wade-Giles system. For conversion table, see: http://library.ust.hk/guides/opac/conversiontables.html
Additional Readings
1. Cheng, Chung-Ying and Nicholas Bunnin, eds. 2002. Contemporary Chinese Philosophy. Malden,
MA: Blackwell.
2. Li, Chenyang. 2000. “The Confucian Concept of Jen and the Feminist Ethics of Care: A
comparative Study.” In Chenyang Li, ed., The Sage and the Second Sex: Confucianism, Ethics, and
Gender. La Salle, IL: Open Court.
3. Liu, JeeLoo. 2006. An Introduction to Chinese Philosophy: from Ancient Philosophy to Chinese
Buddhism. Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishing.
4. Yao, Xinzhong. 2000. An Introduction to Confucianism. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Primary Texts and Some Suggested Translations
The Analects/Lunyu
• Ames, Roger T. and Henry Rosemont, Jr. 1998. The Analects of Confucius: A
Philosophical Translation. New York: The Random House Publishing Group.
• Lau, D.C. trans. 2002 [1979]. Confucius: The Analects. Hong Kong: The
Chinese University Press.
The Mozi
• Watson, Burton. 2003. Mozi. New York: Columbia University Press.
• Knoblock, John and Jeffrey Riegel. 2013. A Study and Translation of the Ethical and Political
Writings. Berkeley: Institute of East Asian Studies.
The Mengzi
• Lau, D. C., trans. 2003 [1970]. Mencius. London: Penguin Books.
• Van Norden, Bryan W., trans. 2008. Mengzi With Selections from Traditional
Commentaries. Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing.
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The Xunzi
• Knoblock, John. 1988, 1990, 1994. Xunzi: A Translation and Study of the
Complete Works, 3 vols. Stanford: Stanford University Press.
• Waston, Burton. Xunzi. New York: Columbia University Press.
The Laozi/Daodejing
• Lau, D.C., trans. 1963. Lao Tzu Tao Te Ching. London: Penguin Books.
The Zhuangzi
• Graham, Angus. 1981. Chuang-Tzu: The Inner Chapters. Indianapolis:
Hackett Publishing Company.
• Watson, Burton, trans., 1968. The Complete Works of Chuang Tzu. New York:
Columbia University Press.
The Guanzi
• Rickett, W. Allyn. 1965. Kuan-Tzu: A Repository of Early Chinese Thought.
Hong Kong: Hong Kong University Press.
_____. 1998. Guanzi: Political, Economic, and Philosophical Essays from Early China.
(vol.1 and vol.2.) New Jersey: Princeton University Press.
The Hanfenzi
• Watson, Burton. 2003. Han Feizi: Basic Writings. New York: Columbia
University Press.
Essay on the Gold Lion
Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch
Zhuzi Yulei
• Chan, Wing-tsit. 1963. A Source Book in Chinese Philosophy. Princeton: Princeton University
Press.
Recommended Secondary Readings
• Chan, Wing-tsit. 1963. A Source Book in Chinese Philosophy. Princeton: Princeton University
Press.
• Graham, A. C.. 1989. Disputers of the Tao: Philosophical Arguments in Ancient China. Chicago:
Open Court.
• Kupperman, Joel J.. 1999. Learning from Asian Philosophy. New York: Oxford University Press.
• Schwartz, Benjamin. 1985. The World of Thought in Ancient China. Cambridge: The Belknap
Press of Harvard University Press.
• Shun, Kwong-loi and David B. Wong, eds. 2004. Confucian Ethics: A Comparative Study of Self,
Autonomy, and Community. New York: Cambridge University Press.
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