Zhuangzi
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Summary
Editor's review
Reading this book, you will feel the editors' deep respect for and careful handling of the Zhuangzi text. They not only clearly explain the philosophical implications of core chapters such as "Free and Easy Wandering" and "The Sorting Which Evens Things Out," but also pay attention to tracing the connections between concepts, helping readers build an overall understanding of Zhuangzi's thought system. The book's explanations of allusions and names and objects are concise and accurate, avoiding excessive extrapolation, and this restraint precisely reflects a professional scholarly attitude. Particularly noteworthy is that while presenting Zhuangzi's magnificent imagination and expansive prose style, the book does not mystify or nihilize it, but guides readers to reflect on the contemporary relevance of its critical spirit and life wisdom.
For readers who wish to go beyond superficial quotation of famous sayings and truly enter Zhuangzi's intellectual world, this edition is a solid choice. It is like a steady guide, not rushing to give you conclusions but showing you the path clearly; the final understanding and insight must still be completed by readers themselves in the course of reading.
Who it's for
A good fit for
- Readers who hope to gain a systematic understanding of Zhuangzi's philosophical thought rather than merely reading famous sayings
- University students or enthusiasts interested in ancient Chinese philosophy and literature who need a reliable introductory guide
- Readers who prefer solid annotation and cautious interpretation while also attending to the tracing of textual and conceptual threads
- Thinkers seeking inspiration for modern life from classical wisdom
Not a good fit for
- Speed-reading readers seeking an extremely popularized, story-based interpretation
- Professional researchers hoping for a large number of original new interpretations or subversive viewpoints
Reading tips
- First read through the editor's introduction to establish a preliminary framework for understanding Zhuangzi the person, his book, and the intellectual background
- When reading the main text, it is helpful to read the original text, annotations, and interpretation in parallel, appreciating the flavor of the classical language and the layers of philosophical thought
- When encountering famous parables such as "Cook Ding Carves Up an Ox" or "Zhuang Zhou Dreams of a Butterfly," pause briefly and, in light of the interpretation, reflect on their multiple meanings
About the publisher
Liaohai Publishing House is a comprehensive publisher known for textbooks and the collation of ancient works. Its publishing scope covers state-approved textbooks, local curriculum materials, supplementary educational books, and national and local ancient-text compilation projects, while also extending into humanities fields such as Eastern philosophy. Its catalog contains about 4,694 titles, with representative works including the multi-volume Records of the Grand Historian (Shiji), and its author resources include classic writers and works such as Sima Qian and Confucius. Grounded in educational publishing and the transmission of traditional culture, the press maintains sustained investment in ancient-text collation, forming a publishing profile that balances textbooks and scholarship. Due to limited public information, its more specific publishing directions and features require further supplementation.
Contents
- 版权信息
- 编辑委员会
- 出版委员会
- 总序
- 出版说明
- 导言
- 整理说明
- 进《庄子义》表
- 卷一
- 逍遥游第一
- 齐物论第二
- 卷二
- 养生主第三
- 人间世第四
- 德充符第五
- 卷三
- 大宗师第六
- 应帝王第七
- 卷四
- 骈拇第八
- 马蹄第九
- 胠箧第十
- 在宥第十一
- 卷五
- 天地第十二
- 天道第十三
- 天运第十四
- 卷六
- 刻意第十五
- 缮性第十六
- 秋水第十七
- 至乐第十八
- 卷七
- 达生第十九
- 山木第二十
- 田子方第二十一
- 知北游第二十二
- 卷八
- 庚桑楚第二十三
- 徐无鬼第二十四
- 则阳第二十五
- 卷九
- 外物第二十六
- 寓言第二十七
- 让王第二十八
- 盗跖第二十九
- 卷十
- 说剑第三十
- 渔父第三十一
- 列御寇第三十二
- 天下第三十三
FAQ
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About the author
Liu Yuejin was born in November 1958 in Baicheng, Jilin. He is a member of the Academic Divisions of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and deputy director of the Division of Literature and Philosophy, and he previously served as director of the Institute of Literature and editor-in-chief of Literary Heritage. He has long engaged in research on the literature of the Han, Wei and Six Dynasties and on classical philology, and is the author of works including A Chronicle of Qin and Han Literature, Philology of Medieval Literature, and Powerful Families and Literary Anthologies. His writings center on classics from the pre-Qin period through the Six Dynasties, touching on works such as Zhuangzi, Laozi, the Analects, the Book of Songs, Xunzi, Han Feizi, The Literary Mind and the Carving of Dragons, and The Art of War. His works are commonly classified under documentary literature, Eastern philosophy, philosophy readings, classical poetry, culture, and general biography. Overall, his writing is grounded in textual scholarship, emphasizing the organization and interpretation of classical texts, and maintains a balance between academic research and general reading, offering readers a solid reference for understanding ancient Chinese thought and literary traditions.
Zhong Shulin is an author about whom limited public information is available. To date, two works are known under this name, commonly classified under documentary literature and historical reading. Representative works include Zhuangzi and Laozi, Zhuangzi: Plain Text Edition. Judging from the titles, these works center on the Daoist classics Laozi and Zhuangzi and appear to be editions or plain-text presentations of traditional texts rather than original academic monographs or fictional writing. A plain-text edition usually preserves the original wording with few annotations or translations, allowing readers to engage directly with the classic texts; the author's work therefore leans toward making classics accessible and promoting reading. Since birth and death dates, nationality, education, and personal experience are not clearly recorded, this profile makes no conjectures and describes only the direction indicated by the existing works: a focus on the Laozi and Zhuangzi Daoist corpus, serving general readers who wish to read the classics directly.
