Seeking Prosperity: Yan Fu and the West

Author: Schwartz
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-07-01
Features: This book is a highly reputable and influential work by the renowned American sinologist Schwartz on modern Chinese philosophy and the history of political thought. With its unique perspective and methodology, the author has rekindled the perception of Yan Fu as a fascinating Western intellectual critic. The author points out that Yan Fu, from the standpoint of traditional Chinese culture that had not undergone modernization, immediately discovered and grasped the theme of "collective capacity" as articulated in European works, and identified at least two secrets in European thought: fully unleashing people's capabilities and directing them toward serving collective purposes with a sense of public spirit. The author's approach to revealing the secrets and strengths and weaknesses of Yan Fu's thought is undoubtedly highly beneficial for in-depth research on the mechanisms and channels of Sino-Western cultural exchange and integration.