Chinese Philosophy: Resources

Early Chinese Philosophy: Surveys and Overviews

  • Benjamin I. Schwartz, World of Thought in Ancient China (Harvard University Press, 1985). Full text online (UBC login required)
  • C. Graham, Disputers of the Tao: philosophical argument in ancient China, (Open Court, 1989). Available at Koerner Library (B127.T3 G69 1989)
  • Michael Loewe & Edward L. Shaughnessy (eds.), Cambridge History of Ancient China, (Cambridge University Press, 2008 online). [Chapter 11: “The Classic Philosophical Writings”, by David Nivison, pp 745-812; Chapter 12: “Warring States Natural Philosophy and Occult Thought”, by Donald Harper, pp 813-884.] Full text online. (UBC login required).

Texts and Tools

Texts

  • Essential Readings on Chinese Philosophy [List of “essential” translations and secondary scholarship on Chinese philosophy, compiled by Bryan W. Van Norden]
  • Chinese Text Project [Website containing many digitized Chinese philosophical and historical texts, sometimes with accompanying translations that are no longer under copyright]
  • Wing Tsit Chan (ed.), A Source Book on Chinese Philosophy, (Princeton University Press, 1963). Available at Koerner Library (B125 .C45).
  • Wm. Theodore De Bary et al. (eds.), Sources of Chinese Tradition, (Columbia University Press, 1999). Available at Koerner Library (DS721 .D37 1999).
  • Burton Watson, The complete works of Chuang Tzu [Zhuangzi], (Columbia University Press, 1968). Full text online (UBC login required)
  • Burton Watson, Basic writings of Mo Tzu [Mozi], Hsün Tzu [Xunzi], and Han Fei Tzu [Han Feizi], (Columbia University Press, 1967). Full text online (UBC login required)
  • Principle Translations of the Thirteen Classics into Western Languages. [Downloadable list of important translations of Chinese philosophical texts into Western languages]

Tools

Warp, Weft and Way. [A group blog of Chinese and comparative philosophy, containing news, links and discussions]

Romanization Systems for Chinese Terms (IEP)

Pinyin to Wade-Giles Conversion Table [A downloadable chart that converts the older “Wade-Giles” system for writing Chinese words in the roman alphabet into the now more common “Pinyin” system]

Warring States Philosophy

This section is broken up into the categories of Confucianism, Daoism, Mohism, Legalism and others for ease of reference, but these categories are contentious and should not be taken as absolute or definitive.

Confucianism

  • Vincent Shen (ed.), Dao Companion to Classical Confucian Philosophy (SpringerLink, 2014). Full Text Online. (UBC Login required)
  • Amy Olberding (ed.), Dao Companion to the Analects (SpringerLink, 2014) Full Text Online. (UBC Login required)
  • Xinzhong Yao, An Introduction to Confucianism (Cambridge University Press, 2000). Full Text online (UBC login required).
  • Ronnie L. Littlejohn, Confucianism: An Introduction (I.B. Tauris, 2010). Full Text Online. (UBC Login required)
  • Confucian Traditions: Bibliography [Bibliography of scholarship on Confucianism from Kenyon College]
  • Confucius (SEP)
  • Mencius (SEP)
  • Xunzi [Hsün Tzu] (SEP)

Daoism

  • Daoism (SEP)
  • Xiaogan Liu (ed.), Dao Companion to Daoist Philosophy (SpringerLink 2014). Full Text Online. (UBC Login required)
  • Books on Daoism. [Bibliography of scholarship on Daoism from Kenyon College]
  • Laozi (Lao Tzu) (SEP)
  • Zhuangzi (Chuang Tzu) (SEP)

Mohism

Legalism

  • Legalism (SEP)
  • Goldin, Paul R. (ed.), Dao Companion to the Philosophy of Han Fei (SpringerLink 2014) Full Text Online. (UBC Login required)

Additional Warring States Philosophy

Han Dynasty and Medieval Philosophy

  • Alan K. L. Chan & Yuet-Keung Lo (eds.), Philosophy and Religion in Early Medieval China, (SUNY Press, 2010). Full text online (UBC login required).
  • Csikszentmihalyi, Mark. (ed. and trans.), Readings in Han Chinese Thought (Hackett, 2006). Available in Koerner Library (B126 .R433 2006)
  • Yang Xiong (Yang Hsiung) (IEP)
  • Wang Chong (Wang Ch’ung) (IEP)
  • Wang Bi (Wang Pi) (IEP)
  • Zhong Hui (Chung Hui) (IEP)
  • Guo Xiang (Kuo Hsiang) (IEP)
  • Ge Hong (Ke Hung) (IEP)

Neo-Confucianism

Themes