Tutorials
- What is Metaphysics?
- How does Ancient Chinese Metaphysics (Yijing) 易經 ☯ ☱ ☵ ☷ etc.) differ from Western systems?
- How does Chinese language influence Chinese metaphysics?
- Does Chinese thought have anything like the Indo-European division of mind and body?
- Is there anything distinctive about Chinese writing that is philosophically significant? Are Chinese "Ideas" written symbols?
- Is there a Chinese word for 'being' (and 'non-being')?
- How does Ancient China's "being" conception differ from that of the West?
- What is dao? Really?
- What is the difference between Laozi's dao and Confucian dao?
- In what form do ancient Chinese thinkers address questions about "what is?"
- What is the relation between normative dao and metaphysical dao.
- What metaphysical doctrines underlay the School of Names' doctrines of names?
- Is "white horse not horse" a metaphysical thesis? Is it right?
- What is the Chinese "part-whole" metaphysical structure?
- How is Zhuangzi's metaphysical system different from Laozi's? Is his relativism a metaphysical stance?
- Is 5-element (5-phase) 五 行cosmology scientific?
- What is the nature of Buddha-nature? of Nirvana? of Enlightenment?
- Is Neo-Confucian liprinciple-qilife force/matter理 氣metaphysics anything like Aristotle's substance-attribute analysis?
- What is the difference between tisubstance體and yongfunction用
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Tutorials: We will have a tutorial each week. The tutorial groups will be selected to try to fit around a table for easy discussion. Tutorial assignments will include quizzes on the readings, a mid-term take-home examination and a term paper. The examination will have the same approximate form as the final (ten questions of which you must prepare eight) so it will help you practice. You may consult readings and discuss the questions with other members of the class and with the lecturer. The final paper will be about 7 pages on a topic of your choice—but please clear the topic with me. I will be suggesting some possible topics near the end of semester.
Plagiarism: You must be careful that in none of your written work do you use a sentence from someone else’s work without putting it in quotes and identifying the source (it can just be in parentheses—doesn’t require a full footnote). This is true in quizzes, take-home examination or your paper. Quoting itself is not the problem. It is quoting without the marks that identify it as someone else’s way of stating the point. Be very careful because I will deduct marks severely for any violation.
