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Realizing TianxiaIn Tze-Ki Hon (ed.), Confucianism for the contemporary world: global order, political plurality, and social action, State University of New York Press. pp. 45-64. 2017.
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23Sacrifice and Suffering: Beyond Justice, Human Rights, and CapitalismModern Theology 18 (3): 333-359. 2002.This essay recovers the redemptive significance of “sacrifice” as the form of Christian resistance to global capitalism. The argument unfolds by way of a comparison of sacrifice, as presented by Anselm, with one of the most compelling contemporary theological accounts of justice and human rights—that of the Latin American liberationists. After showing how the liberationists' vision is implicated in the capitalist order, I argue that Anselm's account of sacrifice displays the advent of the anecon…Read more
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23Bearing the Weight of Salvation: The Soteriology of Ignacio Ellacuría – By Michael E. LeeModern Theology 26 (4): 686-689. 2010.
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17Just Policing, Not War: An Alternative Response to World Violence – Edited by Gerald W. SchlabachModern Theology 25 (4): 692-694. 2009.
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22The ethics of international human rights non-governmental organizationsIn Thomas Cushman (ed.), Handbook of human rights, Routledge. pp. 444. 2012.
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1Roles, Community, and MoralityIn James Behuniak (ed.), Appreciating the Chinese Difference: Engaging Roger T. Ames on Methods, Issues, and Roles, Suny Press. pp. 203-211. 2018.
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5Book Review: Ransomed, Redeemed, and Forgiven: Money and the Atonement by David H. McIlroy (review)Studies in Christian Ethics 37 (1): 167-170. 2024.
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1228Confucianism and ubuntu: Reflections on a dialogue between chinese and african traditionsJournal of Chinese Philosophy 38 (s1): 78-95. 2011.In this article we focus on three key precepts shared by Confucianism and the African ethic of Ubuntu: the central value of community, the desirability of ethical partiality, and the idea that we tend to become morally better as we grow older. For each of these broad similarities, there are key differences underlying them, and we discuss those as well as speculate about the reasons for them. Our aim is not to take sides, but we do suggest ways that Ubuntu and Confucianism might have something to…Read more
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30Just Hierarchy: Why Social Hierarchies Matter in China and the Rest of the WorldPrinceton University Press. 2020.A trenchant defense of hierarchy in different spheres of our lives, from the personal to the political All complex and large-scale societies are organized along certain hierarchies, but the concept of hierarchy has become almost taboo in the modern world. Just Hierarchy contends that this stigma is a mistake. In fact, as Daniel Bell and Wang Pei show, it is neither possible nor advisable to do away with social hierarchies. Drawing their arguments from Chinese thought and culture as well as other…Read more
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7Ancient Chinese Thought, Modern Chinese Power (edited book)Princeton University Press. 2011.The rise of China could be the most important political development of the twenty-first century. What will China look like in the future? What should it look like? And what will China's rise mean for the rest of world? This book, written by China's most influential foreign policy thinker, sets out a vision for the coming decades from China's point of view. In the West, Yan Xuetong is often regarded as a hawkish policy advisor and enemy of liberal internationalists. But a very different picture e…Read more
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14East Meets West: Human Rights and Democracy in East AsiaPrinceton University Press. 2000.Is liberal democracy a universal ideal? Proponents of "Asian values" argue that it is a distinctive product of the Western experience and that Western powers shouldn't try to push human rights and democracy onto Asian states. Liberal democrats in the West typically counter by questioning the motives of Asian critics, arguing that Asian leaders are merely trying to rationalize human-rights violations and authoritarian rule. In this book--written as a dialogue between an American democrat named De…Read more
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7Confucian Political Ethics (edited book)Princeton University Press. 2007.For much of the twentieth century, Confucianism was condemned by Westerners and East Asians alike as antithetical to modernity. Internationally renowned philosophers, historians, and social scientists argue otherwise in Confucian Political Ethics. They show how classical Confucian theory--with its emphasis on family ties, self-improvement, education, and the social good--is highly relevant to the most pressing dilemmas confronting us today. Drawing upon in-depth, cross-cultural dialogues, the co…Read more
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6Une perspective confucéenne sur les droits de propriétéRevue de Philosophie Économique 24 (1): 67-93. 2023.Tout au long de l’histoire de la Chine, les confucéens se sont opposés au contrôle rigoureux du gouvernement légiste et ont mis en garde contre les effets négatifs de l’intervention de l’État dans l’économie. Cela ne s’est toutefois pas traduit par l’approbation d’un régime de droits de propriété privée sans entraves. Du point de vue confucéen, l’État a l’obligation de garantir les conditions du bien-être matériel de base de la population et celle-ci est prioritaire sur la promotion du marché li…Read more
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16Social cohesion without electoral democracy: The case of ChinaPhilosophy and Social Criticism 46 (5): 553-562. 2020.Democratic elections, whatever the flaws, tend to produce a sense of social cohesion as ordinary citizens, treated as equals, gather together to select their country’s political leaders. In China,...
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120Beyond Liberal Democracy: A Debate on Democracy and Confucian MeritocracyPhilosophy East and West 59 (4): 523-523. 2009.None.
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19Toward Meritocratic Rule in China?: A Response to Professors Dallmayr, Li, and TanPhilosophy East and West 59 (4): 554-560. 2009.Let me first thank the critics for their insightful contributions to the debate. I hesitate to call the three professors “critics” since the areas of agreement may outweigh the areas of disagreement. But I should focus on areas of disagreement to further the debate, and that’s what I’ll try to do here. I’ll begin with a few remarks about methodology, then attempt to clarify my own view regarding democracy with “Confucian characteristics,” and my response will conclude with some reflections on al…Read more
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75. What’s Wrong with Active Citizenship? A Comparison of Physical Education in Ancient Greece and Ancient ChinaIn Beyond Liberal Democracy: Political Thinking for an East Asian Context, Princeton University Press. pp. 121-151. 2006.
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376. Taking Elitism Seriously: Democracy with Confucian CharacteristicsIn Beyond Liberal Democracy: Political Thinking for an East Asian Context, Princeton University Press. pp. 152-179. 2006.
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28Toward Confucian-Inspired Democratic Meritocracy: A Response to Yong Huang, Chenyang Li, and Binfan WangPhilosophy East and West 69 (2): 585-591. 2019.Let me first express my gratitude for the three detailed and informative critiques of my book The China Model. These critiques are themselves models of Confucian civility, even as they express sharp areas of disagreement. There does seem to be agreement that the ideal of a Confucian-inspired democratic meritocracy is a worthwhile political project, particularly in the Chinese political context, but Huang, Li, and Wang question my book's arguments in defense of this ideal. There are three kinds o…Read more
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124. The Ethical Challenges of International Human Rights NGOs: Reflections on Dialogues between Practitioners and TheoristsIn Beyond Liberal Democracy: Political Thinking for an East Asian Context, Princeton University Press. pp. 84-118. 2006.
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19Review: Human Rights and Social Criticism in Contemporary Chinese Political Theory (review)Political Theory 32 (3). 2004.
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4Selected bibliographyIn Beyond Liberal Democracy: Political Thinking for an East Asian Context, Princeton University Press. pp. 343-368. 2006.
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812. Responses to Critics: The Real and the IdealIn Beyond Liberal Democracy: Political Thinking for an East Asian Context, Princeton University Press. pp. 323-342. 2006.
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46Reconciling Confucianism and NationalismJournal of Chinese Philosophy 41 (1-2): 33-54. 2014.Confucianism has made a comeback in mainland China over the last two decades or so. Politically minded Confucian revivalists see Confucianism as the core of national identity that differs from “foreign” traditions such as liberalism and they argue for replacing Marxism with Confucianism as the core ideology of the one-party state. But is the ancient tradition of Confucianism compatible with the modern tradition of nationalism? And is it possible to defend a morally appealing form of “Confucian n…Read more
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2911. Justice for Migrant Workers? The Case of Migrant Domestic Workers in East AsiaIn Beyond Liberal Democracy: Political Thinking for an East Asian Context, Princeton University Press. pp. 281-322. 2006.
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12Just Hierarchy: Why Social Hierarchies Matter in China and the Rest of the WorldPrinceton University Press. 2020.A trenchant defense of hierarchy in different spheres of our lives, from the personal to the political All complex and large-scale societies are organized along certain hierarchies, but the concept of hierarchy has become almost taboo in the modern world. Just Hierarchy contends that this stigma is a mistake. In fact, as Daniel Bell and Wang Pei show, it is neither possible nor advisable to do away with social hierarchies. Drawing their arguments from Chinese thought and culture as well as other…Read more
Areas of Interest
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Applied Ethics |
Meta-Ethics |
Normative Ethics |
Ancient Greek and Roman Philosophy |
Continental Philosophy |
European Philosophy |