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us ————
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i Siufu Tang
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p Published by State University of New York Press, Albany
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ir © 2016 State University of New York
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e Printed in the United States of America
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pu No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without
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p For information, contact State University of New York Press, Albany, NY
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ou www.sunypress.edu
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i Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
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ro Names: Tang, Siu-Fu, 1974– author.
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re Title: Self-Realization through Confucian learning : a contemporary reconstruction of
be Xunzi’s ethics / Siufu Tang.
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no Description: Albany : State University of New York Press, 2016. | Series: SUNY series in
ay Chinese philosophy and culture | Includes bibliographical references and index.
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. Identifiers: LCCN 2015036580 | ISBN 9781438461496 (hardcover : alk. paper) |
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rv ISBN 9781438461502 (e-book)
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es Subjects: LCSH: Xunzi, 340 B.C.–245 B.C. | Confucian ethics. | Philosophy, Chinese—
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ts To 221 B.C. | Philosophy, Confucian—China.
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ig Classification: LCC B128.H7 T365 2016 | DDC 181/.112—dc23
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l LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2015036580
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es 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
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Reconstruction of Xunzi's Ethics
Account: s5122861
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ub Acknowledgments vii
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om Introduction 1
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ss Chapter 1. Xing and Native Conditions 11
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er Xunzi’s definitions of xing 13
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ut “People’s xing is bad” 17
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it Natural desires and moral neutrality 26
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n Chapter 2. Wei and Human Agency 37
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ed Definitions of wei 38
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b Xunzi’s worldview 56
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M Chapter 3. Xing, Wei, and the Origin of Ritual Propriety 65
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ve Creation of ritual propriety from wei 68
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es People’s xing at the two stages of wei 76
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ts Ritual propriety and the satisfaction of desires 79
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ri The heart-mind’s approval and second-order evaluation 85
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Al Desires and their form of expression 91
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vi Contents
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. Conclusion 135
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ub I have received much help and encouragement in the process of writing
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h this book. First, I acknowledge the kind permission of the publishers to
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ro incorporate materials from the following two publications: chapter 1, “Xing
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on and Native Conditions,” is based on “Xing and Xunzi’s Understanding of
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is Our Nature,” in Dao Companion to Xunzi’s Philosophy, ed. Eric Hutton
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pe (Dordrecht: Springer, forthcoming); part of chapter 4, “Ritual Propriety and
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ou the Good Life,” is based on “Self and Community in the Xunzi,” Frontiers
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wi of Philosophy in China 7.3 (2012): 455–470.
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o This book originates from a D.Phil. dissertation I wrote under the
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an supervision of Nicholas Bunnin and Robert Chard at Oxford University.
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i I thank Nick and Robert for their unfailing support and help during and
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uc after my studies at Oxford. Further research and writing of the book mainly
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pr took place at the University of Hong Kong. I was able to take a sabbatical
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e to concentrate on writing because of a grant from the Research Grants
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o Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China (HKU
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Ma 753112). I thank RGC Hong Kong for this generous support. Colleagues
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ed and friends at the School of Chinese, HKU, gave me a warm welcome as
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se well as a stimulating environment in which to do my research and writing.
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s Exchanges with members of the larger HKU community, in particular,
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ig Joseph Chan, Chris Fraser, and Dan Robins, have helped me to formulate
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ll many of the ideas in this book. I thank also Stephen Angle, Chung-yi
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s Cheng, Yiu-ming Fung, Kurtis Hagen, Yong Huang, Eric Hutton, Philip
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© 2016. SUNY Pr copyright law. JSY.ha nIihvga, nJXKihwiwoaeoeoi, n CfDgoi-r ol aoidnli i dsKSc hSuimuhssnu,i ,o- KmnAasea rirya onSnnhd Li Sheat xiah,cl anhCvaaehkn eegbnree,y eWoannf igiinn dnsLetiiare,us .MmSuesnnagyt,au lkS iion rS -tahhtooeo , pnYr euTpaaannr-,ak taainonndg
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ghab and publication of the book. Roger T. Ames has read through the whole
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viii Acknowledgments
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. manuscript and given many valuable comments, though I have not been
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r able to incorporate all of his suggestions fully. I also thank the anonymous
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un readers for their constructive comments. The remaining limitations and
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te errors are, of course, mine. The staff at SUNY Press have been extremely
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rm helpful and friendly during the production of this book. It has been a
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s delight to work with them.
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u Last but not least, I owe special gratitude to my parents and my wife
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f for their support and forbearance over the years when this book was in
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ce preparation. It is through their love and nurturance that I am convinced
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, that self-realization is a mutual project of discovery and accomplishment.
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Reconstruction of Xunzi's Ethics
Account: s5122861
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ub This book is concerned with a reconstruction of Xunzi’s (荀子, born around
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h 310 BCE) moral philosophy in a response to the modern belief of self-
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ro realization and a concern for oneself.1 Such a modern belief is used as a
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on perspective as well as the background for an understanding of Xunzi’s moral
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is philosophy in the modern world.
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pe I suggest that we should take seriously Xunzi’s claim that “people’s
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ou xing (性, nature/native conditions) is bad.”2 By such a claim Xunzi high-
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w lights that our xing is originally without an ethical framework and that
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fo it has a natural tendency to dominate us, leading us to make bad judg-
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an ments and consequently behave badly. Thus it is necessary that our xing be
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i transformed by Confucian learning, the center of which is ritual propriety
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uc (li 禮).3 However, ritual propriety represents not external constraints on
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pr our xing. Rather, ritual propriety is derived from our self-interpretation of
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e our xing and refers to norms that allow us to realize ourselves fully. Ritual
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o propriety represents the Confucian understanding of human goodness, the
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Ma components of which are the best nourishment of desires and a harmoni-
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ed ous communal life. Ritual propriety represents also constitutive norms of
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se human agency and selfhood. Through ritual propriety people achieve an
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s integral self and are in command of their own lives. They are then in con-
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ig trol of their desires and feelings and can satisfy desires in such a way that
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l is best for them. Moreover, ritual propriety structures human relationships
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ss and makes possible a harmonious communal life. Goods internal to such
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