2020182709 童禧辰 1803402班
Gu Hongming is one of the philosophers who I admire very much. Although some of his behavior is erratic, but his contribution to the wide spread of Chinese culture should by no means be covered up. As a master who translated the Great Learning, the Doctrine of the Mean and the Analects of Confucius into foreign language, his command of English and understanding of ancient Chinese culture are beyond doubt. The spirit of the Chinese people is another masterpiece which ‘sells’ Chinese culture to the western world. In this book, what amazes me most is the Chinese ancient poetry which is beautifully presented in magnificent English.
Just like:
Fret not,—though poor we yet can pass the year;
Let the north wind blow ne' er so chill and drear,
Next year when peach and willow are in bloom,
You' ll yet see Spring and sunlight in our.
The ‘free translation’ satisfies both the rhyme and meaning. For me, maybe it is kind of less glamorous, but to be frank, no versions can do better than this.
Besides, I would like to talk about one of the author's conclusions. From this conclusion, we can roughly see the epitome of the whole book.
In China, Gu argues, the position of the worship of religion has been replaced by a respect of Confucian morality. In some sense, Confucianism supersedes the religion beliefs. The difference is that we don't believe in Confucius, but westerners believe in the founder of their religion, for example, Christians believe in Jesus and muslims believe in Allah (It was said that Mohammed was an emissary of Allah).
Religious beliefs in the western world gave the clergy high status and great power, bringing about corruption. Consequently, they turn to law, which triggered mob problems and militarism. While Confucianism relies on the moral force to restrain the citizens. And, eventually, World War I broke out. So enormous an merit Confucianism enjoys that there will be no mob problem. Therefore, the author believes that "selling" Confucianism to the world is able to effectively promote social harmony and stability.
There is no doubt that the writer really respect Confucianism and understands Chinese culture, but the "old" of the old man is also reflected in the book.
The loyalty to the monarch, he said, is paramount in the civic honor.
But is there no morality without a king? Is there no honor without an emperor? Obviously, the Confucianism exerted a cultivating impact on him, yet its dross corrupts his mind. Meanwhile, Gu’s perspective on concubines, which is published in The Chinese woman, also evidently indicates that he held some banal and absurd thoughts.
In short, the book sings high praise for the greatness of ancient Chinese culture in magnificent English. It’s amazing that he clearly explained the role of Confucianism in the operational mode of the society. However, some flaws of Chinese ancient culture, such as the idea of monarch and minister, inequality between men and women, are also presented in it. But it is The spirit of the Chinese people that brings the Chinese thinking to the world around World War I. And what I really hope is more and more people spread Chinese culture to the world through various ways!
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