A Reader of Mencius

Name: A Reader of Mencius
ISBN: 9787559630032

贝冢茂树 / 李斌Beijing United Publishing Co., Ltd. · ChinaJan 2023

4.4

Word count: 100K words
Chapters: 28
ISBN: 9787559630032

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Summary

This book is divided into three parts. Part One describes the historical background from which Mencius's thought emerged—the Warring States period, with contending feudal lords and the rise of city-states. Part Two introduces the life of Mencius himself, from his efforts to promote his political ideals to his retreat into teaching. Part Three, the main body of the book, presents selections from the Mencius with translation and annotation, interpreting their meaning in light of the era and of Mencius himself. With the calm, objective eye of a Japanese scholar, the author portrays Mencius and his ideas in a turbulent age with warmth, breaking down stereotypes and drawing him back into the texture of our own lived experience.

Editor's review

Muneshige Hizuka was a towering historian of the Kyoto School, known for his "doubting antiquity" stance. When he wrote The Mencius Reader he was nearly seventy, yet he deliberately set aside academic textual criticism and used an extremely everyday tone to bring Mencius "back down to earth." The book has thirty-six chapters; each begins with a translation of the original passage, then, as if in conversation, asks: On what grounds did Mencius insist that "all people have a mind that cannot bear to see others suffer"? Why, after being rebuffed everywhere, did he still believe that "the benevolent are invincible"? Again and again the author steers the discussion toward postwar Japan: the costs of rapid economic growth, the rat race in education, political apathy... turning Mencius from the "Second Sage" into a "stubborn public intellectual." The translation avoids rare characters and uses short, clipped sentences, as if a Japanese teacher were speaking to students; the commentary boldly cuts passages of the original that archaeology has overturned, keeping only those that can still sting today. When you finish, you realize that the core of the Mencian question is really "how do we live with power," and Hizuka's answer is: first be a person who does not deceive his own heart. The book has a Douban rating of 8.7, and the words that appear most often in short reviews are "disenchantment" and "long-lost warmth." If you have ever been scared off by the label "theory of human goodness," you can treat this as a relaxed "reintroduction to Mencius."

Who it's for

A good fit for

General readers intimidated by Confucian classics who want a modern point of entry
Journalists and teachers concerned with public issues who want to reflect on the present through classical thought
Nonfiction enthusiasts who enjoy the "light academic" style of Japanese scholars
Instructors preparing general-education courses who need concise, critically minded reference material

Not a good fit for

Specialists in classical studies seeking word-by-word exegesis and textual collation
Upper-level philosophy students expecting a systematic exposition of Mencius's philosophical system

Reading tips

Read each chapter's translation first, then go back to the author's "questions," so as not to be led along by the commentary
Compare the postwar Japanese social events mentioned in the book with contemporary China for additional resonance
If time is short, focus on chapters 5, 11, and 23, which concentrate on the core proposition of "benevolent governance and the modern state"

About the publisher

Beijing United Publishing Co., Ltd. China · Founded in 1993

Beijing United Publishing Co., Ltd. is a publisher known for its literature and history titles, with 2,065 books in the collection. Its publishing covers foreign literature, contemporary Chinese prose and essays, history, folk literature, and cultural books. Its list ranges from Sima Qian's complete edition of the Records of the Grand Historian to foreign classics such as The Book of Disquiet, All Quiet on the Western Front, Snow Country, The Stranger, and Jean-Christophe, as well as modern Chinese works including Teahouse and Dawn Blossoms Plucked at Dusk. Its authors and translators include Yasunari Kawabata, Fernando Pessoa, Erich Maria Remarque, Jin Xinyi, Zhou Miao, and Chen Chao. Public information is limited, but its catalogue reflects a balance between Chinese and foreign literary classics and historical and cultural works.

版权信息
前言
孟子思想的时代背景——战国时代
一混沌的时代
二新文化的气息
三孔子的历史地位与诸子百家
孟子其人与思想
一孟母三迁
二孟子的生涯
三孟子的性善说
《孟子》这部著作
著作解题
第一卷梁惠王章句上
第二卷梁惠王章句下
第三卷公孙丑章句上
第四卷公孙丑章句下
第五卷滕文公章句上
第六卷滕文公章句下
第七卷离娄章句上
第八卷离娄章句下
第九卷万章章句上
第十卷万章章句下
第十一卷告子章句上
第十二卷告子章句下
第十三卷尽心章句上
第十四卷尽心章句下
孟子相关年表
出版后记

FAQ

Is this book an academic monograph?

No. It is a "cultivation reader" for a general audience. It has footnotes, but far fewer than a scholarly article, and it aims to stimulate thought rather than deliver definitive conclusions.

Do I need to read the original Mencius beforehand?

Not necessary. Hizuka provides contextual translation in every chapter, so you can start from zero; if you are still interested afterward, going back to the original will be much easier.

Does the book involve comparisons between China and Japan?

Yes, but only lightly. The author is more concerned with "problems shared by modern people" than with comparing cultures, so Chinese readers will not feel alienated.

Comments

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About the author

贝冢茂树 Author

Kaizuka Shigeki is an author known for organizing and interpreting classical Chinese thought, with works appearing mainly in the categories of philosophy and Eastern philosophy. The available titles show that he writes on the pre-Qin thinkers and Confucian classics; the collection includes Mencius Reader and Kodansha: The Spirit of the Philosophers (6 volumes). The former takes the Mencius as its subject of interpretation, while the latter brings together the thought of the various masters and presents the intellectual character of pre-Qin philosophers. Because public information is limited, details such as his life, nationality, and dates of birth and death cannot be confirmed. Judging from the form of his works, however, he writes for general readers, aiming to explain the meaning of the original texts clearly and readably, combining accessibility with interpretive depth, and his books are suitable for readers interested in Confucianism and the teachings of the various masters.

李斌 Author

Li Bin's works span a broad range of subjects, covering legal practice, social documentary writing, and philosophical reading. In corporate law, he offers practical analysis of the design of articles of association and shareholder disputes, using real cases to discuss corporate control, combining operational guidance with cautionary insight. In the field of historical documentary writing, he took part in compiling and translating several volumes of the Historical Materials on the Nanjing Massacre, including the diaries and recollections of Japanese officers and soldiers as well as related reporting in Japanese newspapers of the time, providing primary sources for researchers. He has also produced reader-friendly interpretations of classics such as Mencius: A Reader and Sunzi: A Reader. Because public information is limited, his dates of birth and death, nationality, and educational background remain unknown, but these thirty works show that he attends both to practical legal issues and to historical sources and the popularization of traditional culture.