Announcements
- 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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Paper Topics
Chinese Philosophy: Metaphysical Issues
Papers are due on May 12. They should be about 6 pages double spaced. You may address any of the following questions or a question of your own choice (though it's a good idea to check your own preferred topic with me first)
- Explain the continuities and differences between the metaphysical scheme of Wang Bi and that of Laozi and/or Zhuangzi.
- In what ways does Guo Xiang's metaphysical explanation of the Zhuangzi resemble and differ from Parmenides? Explain the difference.
- What features of Zen Buddhism particularly suggest the influence of classical Daoism? What are better explained by the influence of Wang Bi?
- Explain how the Neo-Daoist influence on the transmission of Buddhism to China shaped the traditional conception of Daoism.
- What are some important epistemological/metaphysical ways the Buddhist influence on Neo-Confucianism changed its direction? What metaphysical features have genuine roots in Classical Confuciansm?
- Explain how Tang Junyi's notion that the Neo-Confucians focus on prescriptive metaphysics explains Wang Yangming's supposed idealism.
- Is Zhuangzi's relativism self-refuting? Explain why or why not?
- Does the skepticism in the Zhuangzi entail that it must be a realist metaphysical view? Explain why or why not.
- What is Dao? How is it like and unlike the Buddha-nature?
- Explain the Daoist puzzle of being v. non-being. How does it become relevant to a dispute in understanding Buddhism?
