All Under Heaven Is for the Common Good (Part 1)

Name: All Under Heaven Is for the Common Good (Part 1)
ISBN: 7801356993

于永玉 / Wu YalingChina Environmental Science Press · ChinaApr 2025

2.8

Word count: 69 words
Chapters: 8
ISBN: 7801356993

Report an error Find this book

Summary

The compilation of this series mainly follows these principles: (1) Uphold critical inheritance: take the essence and discard the dross. Neither affirm nor negate wholesale. Insist on abstract inheritance, deductive development, grounding in the contemporary era, and serving present needs. (2) Uphold a systemic and holistic principle. Attend to distribution across historical periods; attend to progressive figures of all ethnic groups; attend to figures at all levels; attend to all sides of a figure. Achieve this: viewed vertically, five thousand years of history form a continuous line; viewed horizontally, virtues emphasize practice, covering every aspect without omission. (17) Uphold the principle of making the past serve the present and serving present needs. In uncovering resources of virtue, especially uncover stories and sayings of ancient figures, and focus on finding and uncovering the traditional public virtue, common virtue, and shared virtue of all classes and ethnic groups; attend to the popular character, democratic character, progressive character, developmental character, universality, and abstractness; do not seek completeness in antiquity, nor completeness in the individual.

Editor's review

This is the first volume of the "All Under Heaven Is for the Public Good" theme and follows the series' overall approach: it uses personal stories and remarks to present traditional virtues related to public-mindedness, the common good, and responsibility. Its value lies in the breadth of its selections: the editors deliberately include figures from different historical periods, ethnic groups, and social levels, avoiding reliance only on famous examples, so that the abstract idea of "serving the public" is grounded in diverse life circumstances. This first volume is relatively concentrated and works well as an entry point for thematic reading. Its strength is the editors' restraint: they explicitly do not wholly endorse ancient content but inherit it in abstract form and ground it in the present, so readers need not fear being fed a single judgment. Suitable for school moral education activities, book club thematic discussions, and adult readers concerned with public-spirit issues who want something to dip into. One caveat: this is a compilation of source material, not an argumentative monograph, so readers must draw out the views themselves in discussion; paired with real public-affairs topics, the reading will yield more concrete gains.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Teachers running thematic class meetings or moral education activities who need "public good" story material
Book club members looking for entry points into discussions of public spirit
General readers interested in how traditional virtues translate into the present, who prefer short pieces
Students who need writing material on public-mindedness and responsibility

Not a good fit for

Readers seeking systematic theoretical argument or institutional analysis
Readers who expect a continuous long-form narrative and dislike fragmentary compilations
Readers looking for a practical guide to contemporary public welfare work

Reading tips

Pick entries related to "public affairs" and "responsibility" from the table of contents first, form a thematic impression, then expand.
While reading, compare the actions in the stories with present-day public life and note one or two questions worth discussing.
For book clubs, assign entries from different historical periods to different members, then gather to exchange findings.
You need not finish it; it works better as a source collection to return to.

About the publisher

China Environmental Science Press China · Founded in 1980

Founded in 1980, China Environmental Science Press is a professional publisher directly under the Ministry of Ecology and Environment. It mainly publishes academic works, textbooks and popular science books in fields such as environmental management, environmental engineering, environmental law and environmental monitoring, and has released more than 10,000 titles over the years. The library contains 102 of its books, which, in addition to environmental subjects, also cover categories including general biography, education, inspirational growth and parenting. Representative titles include 100 Outstanding Artists of the World, 100 Outstanding Writers of the World, Respecting Teachers and Valuing Education, Management Maxims, Unity and Mutual Assistance, Maturity and Self-Confidence, and Honor, Disgrace, Benefit and Harm, while representative authors include Feng Hua, Bi Shang, Wu Yaling, Yu Yongyu and Li Ming. Overall, while maintaining its professional environmental publishing, the press also offers general-interest biography, education and personal-growth titles; public information on its specific environmental book series and author roster is limited.

版权信息
1
2
3
4
5
6
7

FAQ

How is "All Under Heaven Is for the Public Good" presented in the book?

According to the series description, the book presents traditional virtues by exploring stories and remarks of ancient figures, with selections spanning historical periods, ethnic groups, and social strata and emphasizing peoplehood, democracy, and progressiveness. The specific contents of the entries are not listed in the available material; readers can choose by theme from the table of contents.

What is the difference between the first and second volumes?

The material only shows that this is "All Under Heaven Is for the Public Good (Volume 1)" and does not explain the division of labor or differences in entries between the two volumes. What is certain is that they belong to the same series and share the same editorial principles. Readers should buy as needed, or read Volume 1 first and then decide whether to continue.

Has the ancient content in the book been screened and evaluated?

In the series description, the editors explicitly commit to critical inheritance: neither wholesale affirmation nor wholesale rejection, but abstract inheritance, interpretive development, grounding in the present, and use for present needs. The material is therefore not a direct transplant of ancient values, and readers should stay discerning and understand it in a contemporary context.

Is it suitable for direct use as a school moral education textbook?

It can serve as supplementary material rather than a ready-made textbook. The stories are short and thematically focused, making it easy for teachers to select and adapt them for classroom discussion; but it lacks supporting content such as lesson plans and discussion questions, so teachers must adapt it themselves and adjust their explanations to students' ages.

Related on WeRead

Comments

Find this book

This site is an index: you start “Search all sources” in your browser, and the entries it lists all point to third-party sites; please judge their availability yourself.

About the author

于永玉 Author

Yu Yongyu is an author about whom limited public information is available. It is known that the author mainly works on Chinese books in the fields of education, philosophical reading, and inspirational personal growth, with fifty-one titles held in the collection. The writing centers on moral cultivation and character development, as seen in representative works such as Respecting Teachers and Valuing Education, On Traditional Chinese Morality, Unity and Mutual Help, Maturity and Self-Confidence, Honor, Shame, Benefit and Harm, Love, Hatred, Gain and Loss, Patriotism and Serving the Country, and Being Worthy of the Name. These works often take traditional moral concepts as their starting point and connect them with everyday topics of conduct. Written in plain language, they are aimed at young readers and general readers interested in parenting and self-improvement, emphasizing value guidance rather than scholarly inquiry, and are therefore commonly classified under education, philosophical reading, and inspirational growth.

Wu Yaling Author · Chinese

Wu Yaling has served as principal of Yucai Yikang Primary School in Wuhan since 2008. Recognized as one of China's top one hundred outstanding principals and as an advanced principal in national moral education, she is also a backbone teacher in Hubei Province, a Wuhan subject leader, and an outstanding teacher in the city. She has edited textbooks such as Role Models for national distribution, published numerous papers on education, and in 2023 released the monograph The Splendor of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Education with Central China Normal University Press. Her works address themes including respect for teachers, solidarity and mutual help, patriotism, and mature self-confidence, and are commonly classified under education, philosophy readings, parenting, and inspirational growth. They focus on character development for young people and on teachers' educational practice, combining traditional virtues with everyday teaching in plain, accessible language.