Confucian Perfectionism: A Political Philosophy for Modern Times

Description

Since the very beginning, Confucianism has been troubled by a serious gap between its political ideals and the reality of societal circumstances. Contemporary Confucians must develop a viable method of governance that can retain the spirit of the Confucian ideal while tackling problems arising from nonideal modern situations. The best way to meet t

Joseph Chan is a professor in the Department of Politics and Public Administration at the University of Hong Kong.

"[T]he political vision that emerges from the pages of this book is reasonable, humane and inspiring."--Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews "Chan has created a very interesting work in the Confucian tradition of revival and reinterpretations for current times."--Choice "[This book is] at the forefront of contemporary attempts to grapple with the normative and empirical issues presented by East Asian politics and the relationship of those issues with democracy. [It] supplies important insights into, and reasons for, considering alternatives to liberal democracy, but also raises equally important questions and problems related to those alternatives."--David J. Lorenzo, Perspectives on Politics "Joseph Chan's book is an exceptionally ambitious yet moderate reconstruction of Confucianism for such an inhospitable world and, as such, it is important both in its own right and as an exemplar of a steadily expanding normative enterprise."--Jiwei Ci, Dao "Chan's writing is very clear and wellstructured. His arguments and in-depth analysis of issues shows that he has a thorough understanding of the strengths and limitations of both western liberal democracy and ancient Confucianism."--Andrew T.W. Hung, European Political Science