Orthodoxy in Late Imperial China

For many people, orthodoxy in late imperial China means Confucianism, or more precisely, Neo-Confucianism. Unlike most studies of Chinese values, which approach the subject as a philosophical and religious system, this book focuses on the interaction between Neo-Confucian beliefs and Chinese political and social institutions. It reveals a Confucianism that stood for far more than mere benevolent government, individual morality, and scholarly cultivation. In the essays presented here,...
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For many people, orthodoxy in late imperial China means Confucianism, or more precisely, Neo-Confucianism. Unlike most studies of Chinese values, which approach the subject as a philosophical and religious system, this book focuses on the interaction between Neo-Confucian beliefs and Chinese political and social institutions. It reveals a Confucianism that stood for far more than mere benevolent government, individual morality, and scholarly cultivation. In the essays presented here, Confucian idealism and transcendence become part of a system of sacred obligations and loyalties operating in the context of the imperial state and the family.

 

These careful case studies examine many facets of late imperial society to create a complex picture of Chinese life. Among other things, they provide a look at the official worship system, mid-Ch'ing scholarly academies, the special status of tenants/servants, and the lineage feuds that were rampant on the southeast coast. The authors bring out the cultural significance of state and family rituals. They depict worried patriarchs composing instructions for the guidance of their children and country magistrates prescribing punishments according to the ritual status of the culprit. A debate between two viewpoints develops: Was orthodoxy a "mode of statecraft," or was it one of the ultimate concerns not only of the Confucian schools but of mainstream Taoism and Buddhism as well?

 

The authors argue that Chinese civilization was characterized by religious and philosophical pluralism and moral orthodoxy. The implications they see for a socioethical doctrine supported by and in support of political authority will be of interest to students of comparative history and civilization.