Rorty, Pragmatism, and Confucianism

An engagement between Confucianism and the philosophy of Richard Rorty.

An engagement between Confucianism and the philosophy of Richard Rorty.

Rorty, Pragmatism, and Confucianism offers a fascinating conversation between Confucianism, historically the dominant tradition in Chinese thought and society, and the contemporary philosophy of Richard Rorty. Well aware that his philosophical hero, John Dewey, has had a lasting influence among Chinese intellectuals, Rorty expressed a wish that his own books, which have been rapidly translated into Chinese, be read as an updated version of Dewey's philosophy. In this book, twelve authors engage Rorty's thought in a hermeneutic dialogue with Confucianism, using Confucianism to interpret and reconstruct Rorty while exploring such topics as human nature, moral psychology, moral relativism, moral progress, democracy, tradition, moral metaphysics, and religiosity. Rorty himself provides a detailed reply to each author.

Yong Huang is Professor of Philosophy at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. He is the editor of Rorty, Pragmatism, and Confucianism: With Responses by Richard Rorty, and the coeditor (with Yang Xiao) of Moral Relativism and Chinese Philosophy: David Wong and His Critics, both published by SUNY Press.

Yong Huang is Professor of Philosophy at Kutztown University and the author of Religious Goodness and Political Rightness: Beyond the Liberal-Communitarian Debate.

"…the volume is a valuable expansion of the scope of contemporary Confucian scholarship." — Philosophy East & West

"…all the essays in this volume go a long way toward facilitating a productive dialogue between pragmatism and Confucian thought. As both of these traditions struggle to redefine themselves in the present and future cultural contexts—both on their native soils and abroad—a book like this will continue to prove useful for a long time to come." — China Review International