Culture and Modernity in Japan

Author: Lin Shaoyang
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-07-01
Features: The Chinese scholar Lin Jun, who is highly responsive to modern intellectual issues, begins his work with "Desheng Cuali Lun," and his intention is indeed well-targeted. Moreover, his discussion reconstructs the concept of writing (ecriture) through Desheng Cuali's "wen," making it the central concept. This approach opens up new critical possibilities for analyzing the absorption of different cultures or the development of Japanese thought as a meta-culture. The pluralistic perspective of "wen" exposes the meaning singularity of voice-centeredism while also making it possible to grasp the conflicts of "wen" among modern Japanese intellectuals. Lin Jun's work, which starts with the discussion of Desheng Cuali's thought, can be said to be a comparative intellectual study with both epistemological depth and strong contemporaneity. In the Sinic cultural sphere centered on China, including Japan, "wen" has been the core concept of language and thought for thousands of years. The author, in this book, re-examines various language theories, literary theories, and literary practices in Japan from the 17th to the 20th centuries, centered on the concept of "wen." In this sense, the discussion in this book is unprecedented in Japanese literary studies and is entirely new and original. The book liberates language theories and literary theories from the Eurocentric evolutionary fantasy, and discusses the linguistic expressions that people in all parts of the world may share. Through these efforts, the book presents itself to us as a theoretical intellectual resource.