91桃色

China鈥檚 most original, diverse, and fascinating political debates took place more than two millennia ago, but they have profoundly shaped Chinese political thinking and practice ever since and, remarkably, their influence on the country鈥檚 leaders is only growing today. Yet these timeless debates鈥攚hich are very likely to influence the answers to such questions as whether China should use military force to take control of Taiwan鈥攁re still far too little understood in the West. In this enlightening and entertaining book, Daniel Bell, a leading expert on Chinese political thought, takes the greatest thinkers from China鈥檚 past鈥擟onfucius, Mencius, Xunzi, Shang Yang, Han Feizi, Zhuangzi, and Mozi鈥攁nd puts them in dialogue with each other in modern settings. The result is a creative and engaging introduction to ancient Chinese political thought that reveals its relevance to the future of China and the rest of the world.

Before China鈥檚 unification in 221 BCE, the brilliant political thinkers who founded Confucianism, Daoism, Legalism, and Mohism roamed from state to state, argued with each other, and tried to persuade rulers to follow their ideas. Bell draws on their debates鈥攁bout such perennial issues as war, corruption, government involvement in family life, and whether the state should subsidize culture鈥攖o create vivid imaginative dialogues about important contemporary social and political controversies.

China鈥檚 political thinking is rooted in its past. Understanding what ancient Chinese political thought can teach us about today鈥檚 critical debates is essential to understanding the future of China and the world.