The Greek Classics and Chinese Nationalism.
from Princeton University Press
This book in an entirely new field provides a provocative look at Chinese politics and ideology through contemporary Chinese readings of ancient Greek classical texts. At the same time, it restores value to the much maligned “dead white men” of Western antiquity by showing, paradoxically enough, how much they matter to another culture. In chapters that discuss Plato, Aristotle, the Jesuits, Confucius, and even Xi Jinping, the author analyzes the pre- and post-Tiananmen Square about-face in the Chinese interpretation of the western classics. Concepts familiar to the western philosophical and political tradition (rationality, citizen, and democracy, to name only a few) are either emptied of value, appropriated, or turned on their heads in nationalist Chinese interpretations of the great Greek thinkers. Plato’s “Noble Lie” is lauded, along with its genetic implications; Aristotle’s “Politics” turns out to be nothing less than brainwashing; and Thucydides’ criticism of Athenian democracy turns out to be all too prescient of modern America. The book ends with a study of Xi Jinping’s continued policy of “the harmonious society” (directly connected to Confucian, but not Socratic, teaching) as a principle of both domestic and foreign policy. In a time when we ask what the classics have left to teach us, the new China is answering that question in a very topical—and political—way.
Reviews
“In China, the classics are alive, shaping how people think about contemporary society and politics. The revival of Chinese classics has been well-documented. Surprisingly, the Greek classics also provide inspiration for Chinese intellectuals, political reformers, and, more recently, defenders of the status quo. Shadi Bartsch’s masterful study illuminates this fascinating cross-cultural encounter. It’s impossible not to learn from her strikingly original book.”―Daniel A. Bell, author of The China Model
“A stirring book, Plato Goes to China reflects the complexities that occur as different societies regard one another―and themselves―through the lens of great ideas. The book will be rewarding for anyone interested in the debates about ancient ideas now unfolding in China and the West.”―Joshua Cooper Ramo, author of The Seventh Sense
“This brilliant study tells the story of how, throughout the twentieth century, Chinese political, cultural, and intellectual leaders used ancient Greek texts, especially Plato, to understand China’s past weaknesses and to bring about its future greatness. Anyone interested in the problems of intercultural transmission, and of the understandings and misunderstandings that permeate the epidemiology of ideas, will have much to learn from this startlingly original analysis. For those concerned with any aspect of policymaking as China grows its global power and influence, this book is required reading.”―G.E.R. Lloyd, University of Cambridge
“This is a fascinating account of the uses and abuses of ancient texts by public intellectuals in China and the United States. Bartsch shows the banality of using ancient texts to make a case for or against contemporary political practices, but she also illustrates the timelessness of the human desire to discover means by which political power can be allied with virtue and wisdom instead of corruption and self-interest.”―Shadia Drury, author of The Bleak Political Implications of Socratic Religion
“This is a riveting exploration of modern Chinese political commentary by a distinguished scholar of ancient Roman and Greek thought. Going far beyond the comparative study of Greek and Chinese philosophy, Bartsch offers a meditation with multiple themes, including how enshrining ancient works as classical is worked into modern identities in China and the West and how contemporary Chinese antidemocracy ideologues reshape their readings of Aristotle and Plato (as well as Mencius and Xunzi) to serve their purposes.”―Pamela Kyle Crossley, author of What Is Global History?
“In China, origins are destiny, and Chinese intellectuals have long considered Greco-Roman antiquity a key to understanding the present-day Western world. In this original and engaging book, Shadi Bartsch shows how the Chinese over the past century and more have used classical antiquity to define the nature of Western civilization and to distinguish the special characteristics of their own. An important book that every student of the cultural rivalry between East and West should read.”―James Hankins, author of Virtue Politics
Table of Contents
Preface
Introduction: The Ancient Greeks in Modern China
I. Why the Ancient Greeks?
II. What’s in It for the West?
III. From “Li” to Xi
Chapter 1: Jesuits and Visionaries
I. Jesuits with Greek Characteristics
II. The Classics and a New Nation
III. To Tiananmen Square, But Not Back
Chapter 2: Classics after the Crackdown
I. Channeling Thucydides
II. Aristotle Takes a Fall
III. A Dissident Voice
Chapter 3: Thinking with Plato’s “Noble Lie”
I. Of Justice, Big and Small
II. A Not So Noble Lie
III. Hierarchy for the People
Chapter 4: Rationality and its Discontents
I. Rationality East and West
II. Listening to Rén
III. It’s Not Binary
Chapter 5: A Straussian Interlude
I. The Prophets of Strauss
II. The Nationalists Make Hay
Chapter 6: Harmony for the World
I. A Brief History of Harmony
II. Confucius Welcomes Socrates
III. A Choice of Republics
Afterword: The Mirror is the Moral
I. Classics, China, and the West
II. Being PC for the CCP
Bibliography
Index