Ku Hung Ming: Der Geist des Chinesischen Volkes und der Ausweg aus dem Krieg (Classic Reprint)

by Hung-ming Ku

Excerpt from Ku Hung MingAbout the PublisherForgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books.This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works. This text has been digitally restored from a historical edition. Some errors may persist, however we consider it worth publishing due to the work's historical value.The digital edition of all books may be viewed on our website before purchase.

190 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2001

Reviews

[Talbot Hook · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought the book was highly interesting, even though I disagreed with the vast majority of it. Some things which were interesting:

1) World War I was blamed upon the common people, and not those diplomats, soldiers, and emperor-kings that most of us imagine. The aforementioned are powerless before the mob, which has woken to find itself strong in the midst of the twentieth-century turmoil. Christianity has failed, there is no loyalty to the family, to the common man, or to the ruler of the country, and therefore nothing can be done but to tear up the Charters of Liberty and make new pledges to the Charter of Loyalty. Above all, there is only one thing that can return the "soul" to Europe: to adopt the ways of the Chinaman.

2) The ideal woman is, of course, beautiful, polite, self-sacrificing, and does not indulge in fruitless things like laughing or giggling in the kitchen. However, the real interesting thing here is why concubinage in China was not immoral, and was, in fact, perfectly fine: the Chinese woman is such a self-sacrificing entity that she cannot even be jealous when her husband brings home another woman. She lacks the ability to hold such a selfish opinion. After all, complete duty to her husband and to her home renders her thus.

3) Chinese is an easy language.

Well, this book is highly worth a read, even if it is horribly outdated.

[Joel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gu Hongming was a Malaysian Chinese from Penang who went to England for an education, became a polyglot (speaking English, Malay, French, German, and Chinese), and eventually moved to China where he became a kind of apologist for Chinese civilization and especially civil religion (which he believes Confucianism is). This book, written around the time of the first world war, is, as far as I know, his only surviving legacy. It's hard to buy his premises by today's standards, since he he completely essentializes people based on nationality (especially, of course, the Chinese -- he says they are a people with adult intellect and child-like hearts). There are some delightful passages -- most of the latter half of the book actually -- in which he excoriates western academics who he sees as total posers when it comes to knowing about China ... but unfortunately Gu rarely gives a convincing reason why we should believe him more than anybody else.

[Mei · Rating 4 out of 5]

The interesting parts of the book I think are about Chinese language and Chinese women. His arguments are clear and easy to understand. Many good sides of Chinese culture are lost in today's life. He is very critical and says what he believes. Just think the book is written nearly a hundred years ago,it is still very thoughtful and inspiring to readers like me in a digital world. I guess no scholars nowadays have the courage to state the ideas as freely as he did. It makes me understand the Chinese culture better.

[Michael Hou · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bought this book a decade ago but only managed to finish it recently. A marvelous interpretation of the Chinese religion and the Chinese language. Only after reading this book did I realize why my parents asked me to sweep my ancestors' tombs after my wedding!

[Sunny · Rating 4 out of 5]

interesting footnote for Chinese harmonious spirit and Confusionism

[Shiny Aiesec]

I'm so suprised that a person in Qing Dynasty can use English so well.Also,it give me a complete new view on Chinese people.