Review of The Analects of Confucius: A Philosophical Translation by Roger T. Ames and Henry Rosemont Jr.
Title: Excellent introduction to how language impacts individual thought, a culture, and a civilization
(Background: Over a couple of decades' time I planned to read the scriptures of the world's great religions/philosophies. I started with my own, reading the Bible in two different translations, first the Hebrew-Greek Word Study Bible by Spiros Zodhiates, and then the NIV. Next I turned to Islam and Al-Quaran. After that The Bhagavad Gita and the Analects of Confucius. Every reading is helping me go a bit deeper and wider into man's search for God and, through that, meaning in this life. More books and reviews to come.)
I read this book on a beach vacation a few years ago. I enjoyed it very much. I'd not read much previously about Confucius or Confucianism, the ethical and philosophical system derived from the man's teachings; this volume filled that void.
The book consists of a lengthy Introduction--70 pages. The Analects are then presented in 20 "books"; the Chinese text is presented alongside the English translation. Appendices take up the remainder.
What I enjoyed most about this book was the Introduction. The authors go to great lengths to explain the times that Confucius (551-479 BC) lived in--the government, the politics, the family structure--and the language of classical Chinese. This is most important to understanding a people, their culture, and what (and why) they believe what they believe, and how they build their civilization. We in the West know that the Orient is different; the authors gave me a better understanding of why. For example, in classical Chinese there are no words as there are in English for--among others--"freedom," "liberty," "choice," "individual," "reason," "autonomy." The authors write: "None of these English words has a close analogue in classical Chinese...." (p. 54).
Let that sink in.
I mean: *really* sink in.
"Freedom." "Liberty." "Choice." "Individual." "Reason." "Autonomy."
If you don't have a word to describe something, then that something simply and "correctly" does not exist for you.
Frightening and eye-opening all at once.....
So for me the Introduction and the insight it provided into Chinese language and, thus, fundamentally, Chinese thinking was worth the price of the book.
The Analects themselves are stories of Confucius' wanderings in the countryside and his sayings on what he thinks is best for proper government, from the emperor down to local rulers down to relations among family. That's about it. But it provides great insight into Chinese thinking. The text at times is rather dry and straightforward. Don't expect "Confucius say...." nonsense. It doesn't exist.
Read this book for the great introduction it is to one of the world's great and largest philosophical (some would say religious) systems. And also for the keen insight it provides into the Chinese people and why things are the way they are.
What's past is prologue.
Sept. 27, 2014 note: The September/October 2014 issue of Foreign Affairs has a short review of the recently published book "An Anatomy of Chinese: Rhythm, Metaphor, Politics" by Perry Link. The first sentence of the review: "Link focuses on how Chinese syntax is to a great extent ordered by speech and sound and not by the kind of grammatical logic at work in many Western languages. He scrutinizes the ways in which certain Chinese words take on metaphoric meanings." The book has a price tag of $39.95, but if you're interested in the topic, it sounds like a necessary book.
(Background: Over a couple of decades' time I planned to read the scriptures of the world's great religions/philosophies. I started with my own, reading the Bible in two different translations, first the Hebrew-Greek Word Study Bible by Spiros Zodhiates, and then the NIV. Next I turned to Islam and Al-Quaran. After that The Bhagavad Gita and the Analects of Confucius. Every reading is helping me go a bit deeper and wider into man's search for God and, through that, meaning in this life. More books and reviews to come.)
I read this book on a beach vacation a few years ago. I enjoyed it very much. I'd not read much previously about Confucius or Confucianism, the ethical and philosophical system derived from the man's teachings; this volume filled that void.
The book consists of a lengthy Introduction--70 pages. The Analects are then presented in 20 "books"; the Chinese text is presented alongside the English translation. Appendices take up the remainder.
What I enjoyed most about this book was the Introduction. The authors go to great lengths to explain the times that Confucius (551-479 BC) lived in--the government, the politics, the family structure--and the language of classical Chinese. This is most important to understanding a people, their culture, and what (and why) they believe what they believe, and how they build their civilization. We in the West know that the Orient is different; the authors gave me a better understanding of why. For example, in classical Chinese there are no words as there are in English for--among others--"freedom," "liberty," "choice," "individual," "reason," "autonomy." The authors write: "None of these English words has a close analogue in classical Chinese...." (p. 54).
Let that sink in.
I mean: *really* sink in.
"Freedom." "Liberty." "Choice." "Individual." "Reason." "Autonomy."
If you don't have a word to describe something, then that something simply and "correctly" does not exist for you.
Frightening and eye-opening all at once.....
So for me the Introduction and the insight it provided into Chinese language and, thus, fundamentally, Chinese thinking was worth the price of the book.
The Analects themselves are stories of Confucius' wanderings in the countryside and his sayings on what he thinks is best for proper government, from the emperor down to local rulers down to relations among family. That's about it. But it provides great insight into Chinese thinking. The text at times is rather dry and straightforward. Don't expect "Confucius say...." nonsense. It doesn't exist.
Read this book for the great introduction it is to one of the world's great and largest philosophical (some would say religious) systems. And also for the keen insight it provides into the Chinese people and why things are the way they are.
What's past is prologue.
Sept. 27, 2014 note: The September/October 2014 issue of Foreign Affairs has a short review of the recently published book "An Anatomy of Chinese: Rhythm, Metaphor, Politics" by Perry Link. The first sentence of the review: "Link focuses on how Chinese syntax is to a great extent ordered by speech and sound and not by the kind of grammatical logic at work in many Western languages. He scrutinizes the ways in which certain Chinese words take on metaphoric meanings." The book has a price tag of $39.95, but if you're interested in the topic, it sounds like a necessary book.
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