Research master thesis | Asian Studies (research) (MA)
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Contrary to the stereotype that Zhang Shi 張栻 (1133-1181) always followed Zhu Xi’s 朱熹 (1130-1200) ideas, this thesis, by examining Zhang’s social origins, socio-political thoughts, and disciples,...Show moreContrary to the stereotype that Zhang Shi 張栻 (1133-1181) always followed Zhu Xi’s 朱熹 (1130-1200) ideas, this thesis, by examining Zhang’s social origins, socio-political thoughts, and disciples, argues that Zhang represents a transitional Neo-Confucianism, which is based on exiled bureaucrat and emphasizes military-fiscal skills and state activism. Zhang Shi learning provides an alternative to statism Wang Anshi 王安石 (1021-1086) learning in the Northern Song (960-1127) and typical Neo-Confucianism represented by Zhu Xi and Lu Jiuxuan 陸九淵 (1139-1191) in Southern Song (1127-1279) , which is based on local spontaneous elites and emphasizes the role of society and local volunteerism. The social origin and foundation of this transitional Neo-Confucianism was the former (potential) capital bureaucratic family who were exiled due to the fall of the Northern Song. They took the northern expedition to return to the capital as their goal and gave up the run of their hometowns and the local communities in which they lived. They were skeptical of Zhu Xi’s social program, such as the community compacts (xiangyang 鄉約), the community granaries (shecang 社倉) and private commercial publishing, which later became the typical behavior of Neo-Confucian. Based on the ideas of Mencius (Mengzi 孟子), Zhang Shi developed the theory of “spontaneous disinterestedness” (wu suowei er ran 無所為而然), which underpinned his ideas on the distinction between righteousness/public/king and profit/selfish/hegemon. Though Zhang learning relied on the state, it cut sharply with Wang learning in the aspect of “motivation”. For Zhang, the power of the state was not an end in itself, but rather the state should be consistent with the spontaneous disinterestedness from the heavenly principle. With a particular emphasis on military-fiscal skills, Zhang and his disciples sought to take over the state apparatus left behind by Wang Anshi’s reforms and to make this state act out of righteousness in the hands of Neo-Confucianism gentlemen. Zhang and his disciples proposed and participated in all the northern expeditions during the Southern Song period. However, the northern capital could never be returned, and the number of exiled bureaucrats who were the social base of Zhang learning (and of the Huxiang 湖湘 school in general) dwindled over time. Zhu Xi, who came from a family of low-ranking exiled bureaucrats, found a new world in the local community in the south, and endeavored to transform himself into a member of the local elite, stepping out from behind Zhang Shi. After Zhang’s death, the local students he left behind in Hunan 湖南 and Sichuan 四川 were eventually aborted by the emerging typical Neo-Confucianism (Zhu Xi and Lu Jiuyuan school) that spoke for the local elites. Zhang as a kind of transitional Neo-Confucianism eventually faded from history, completing the transition from the Northern Song learning to the later typical Neo-Confucianism. By reframing this transitional and alternative Neo-Confucianism, this thesis refines the Hymes-Bol’s localism paradigm about the explanation of why and how Neo-Confucianism raised.Show less
Research master thesis | Asian Studies (research) (MA)
open access
Despite the exalted status of Southern Song (1127-1279) scholar Zhu Xi (1130-1200) in the contemporary body of research, relatively little effort has been dedicated to understanding his views on...Show moreDespite the exalted status of Southern Song (1127-1279) scholar Zhu Xi (1130-1200) in the contemporary body of research, relatively little effort has been dedicated to understanding his views on military affairs and policy. Furthermore, analyses of his military policy recommendations and assessments of his participation in the debate on the Jin-Song conflict have not yet benefited from a thorough comparison with his more “philosophical” works, most importantly the Four Books and his later statements collected in the Thematic Discourses. This paper seeks to both expand and nuance the current understanding of Zhu Xi’s military thought by taking into account a broader array of historical sources, ranging from the foundational Four Books to his private letters and assorted sayings. The structure of the present paper is divided into two main parts. In the first part, I shall examine several general discussions on topics of warfare as they occur in the Four Books, basing myself primarily on Zhu Xi’s commentaries and his collected statements on its topics. The aim of this section is to establish the importance of military policy within Zhu Xi’s political thought, serving analogously to the institution of legal punishment as a functional expression or “tip” of the “root” of moral government. “Barbarians”, as physiologically and, by extension, morally deficient creatures, constituted a special object of military action. Lastly, while military conduct should always depart from an understanding of Principle as the determinant of “things as they should be”, practical and strategic considerations remained a legitimate and indeed necessary topic of inquiry. In the second part of the paper, based on the historical and philosophical framework reconstructed previously, I aim to reexamine Zhu Xi’s public and private writings concerning specifically the issue of Jin-Song relations. Three topics prove to be of particular relevance. Firstly, addressing recent claims that Zhu Xi supposedly abandoned the revanchist cause later in life, I will argue that his gradual reconceptualization of the state and its sovereign as the primary foci of revanchist sentiment enabled him to maintain this cause unabatedly. Secondly, through a reassessment of his early private and political writings I will address claims of Zhu’s supposed “hawkish” attitude towards the conflict, instead arguing that his acute perception of Song military weakness informed his consistently defensive and preparatory stance. Lastly, building on recent suggestions that Zhu had argued chiefly for a process of “moral rearmament” as the basis for military reconquest, I will examine his practical and concrete policy suggestions. Throughout, I shall emphasize possible loci of interaction and interdependence between Zhu’s political and philosophical writings, ultimately arguing that the two are inextricably related.Show less
