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Full-Text Articles in Ethics and Political Philosophy

Book Review On Kyoto School Philosophy In Comparative Perspective: Ideology, Ontology, Modernity (By Bernard Stevens), Dennis Stromback Jan 2024

Book Review On Kyoto School Philosophy In Comparative Perspective: Ideology, Ontology, Modernity (By Bernard Stevens), Dennis Stromback

Comparative Philosophy

No abstract provided.


Xun Zi On Desiring To Be Good: Desire As The Necessary Condition For The Transformation Of Nature, Angel Ting Jan 2024

Xun Zi On Desiring To Be Good: Desire As The Necessary Condition For The Transformation Of Nature, Angel Ting

Comparative Philosophy

There are various discussions on the role of desires in the Xun-Zi and how the transformation of nature takes place. Some scholars hold that the heart-mind can override inborn human desires, a view that is analogous to externalism; others maintain the internalism view that desires are essentially motivating in the Xun-Zi. This paper aims to resolve this seeming conflict between externalism and internalism. By introducing David B. Wong's model of being an internalist about duty and an externalist about reason, I will show that desires in the Xun-Zi are necessarily motivating because of their direction of fit, and …


A Comparative Study Of Emotion In Indian And Western Philosophy, Prasasti Pandit, William Krieger Jan 2024

A Comparative Study Of Emotion In Indian And Western Philosophy, Prasasti Pandit, William Krieger

Comparative Philosophy

This paper aims to develop a comparative analysis of the place of emotion from Indian and Western philosophical perspectives. Both Eastern and Indian philosophy consider three mental states as being involved with the arousal of emotions, i.e., cognitive (epistemic), conative (desire), and affective. In Indian philosophy, there is no such single term or specific equivalent definition to the Western term ‘emotion.’ Further, there is no clear dichotomy (cognitive & non-cognitive) between reason and emotion in Indian culture. In Indian scriptures, there are various, at times intermingled conceptions of emotion. From a religious standpoint, emotion can be an expression of religious …


Golden Rule Ethics And Complementary Learning Process With The Other: From Confucius’ And Christian Approaches To Hatatas’ Approach, Fasil Merawi Jan 2024

Golden Rule Ethics And Complementary Learning Process With The Other: From Confucius’ And Christian Approaches To Hatatas’ Approach, Fasil Merawi

Comparative Philosophy

Through the development of a comparative analysis that explores the conceptions of the Golden Rule that are expressed in the teachings of Confucius, Christianity and the Hatatas, the article shows that the combined insights that emerge from these three teachings have a contemporary significance in the attempt to develop a complementary learning process with the Other. Throughout its variations, the Golden Rule is grounded on the need to treat others as how we want to be treated. Such a moral vision occupies a central importance in Confucius’s ren, Christianity’s Gospel of Matthew and the commandments, and the Hatatas’ principle of …


Intersecting Perspectives: A Comparative Dialogue On Respect In Confucian And Western Philosophies, Chuan Chih Hsu, Antonio Calderón, Chia Shih Su Jan 2024

Intersecting Perspectives: A Comparative Dialogue On Respect In Confucian And Western Philosophies, Chuan Chih Hsu, Antonio Calderón, Chia Shih Su

Comparative Philosophy

Present study analyzes the concept of respect in both Confucius' and Western philosophical traditions. It reveals the differences in interpretation and practice of respect due to their distinctive cultural, historical, and philosophical contexts. Confucius' philosophy emphasizes respect towards authority, traditions, and the elderly through dedication and commitment, while Western philosophy, primarily Aristotle's perspective, emphasizes reciprocal respect and the inherent rights of individuals. Both systems of thought, although contrasting, seek to promote values fostering cooperation, understanding, and peaceful coexistence. Despite their varied conceptualizations of respect, the ultimate goal remains the same – to provide ethical and moral guidance for a harmonious …


Book Review On Creating A Shared Morality: The Feasibility Of Ethical Constructivism (By Heather Salazar), Karin Brown Jul 2023

Book Review On Creating A Shared Morality: The Feasibility Of Ethical Constructivism (By Heather Salazar), Karin Brown

Comparative Philosophy

No abstract provided.


Zhuang Zi And The “Greatest Joyousness”: Wang Fuzhi’S Approach, John R. Williams Jul 2023

Zhuang Zi And The “Greatest Joyousness”: Wang Fuzhi’S Approach, John R. Williams

Comparative Philosophy

The present article presents Wang Fuzhi 王夫之 (1619-1692 C.E.)’s reading of the eighteenth chapter of the Zhuang-Zi 莊子 (ZZ) by looking at his entry from Zhuang-Zi-Tong 莊子通 and other key glosses from Zhuang-Zi-Jie 莊子解. The philosophical upshot, I aim to show, is that Wang takes ZZ as presenting the consummation of “the greatest joyousness” (zhi-le 至樂) as requiring getting rid of joyousness as one’s desideratum. Using Derek Parfit’s work as a point of reference, I aim to show that this is not paradoxical or even inconsistent or even (directly or indirectly) self-defeating but is instead an interesting instance of …


Analyzing Nietzsche And Darwin In Search Of Origin Of Morality: The Evolving Perspective, Anirban Ghosh, Malabika Chakrabarti Jul 2023

Analyzing Nietzsche And Darwin In Search Of Origin Of Morality: The Evolving Perspective, Anirban Ghosh, Malabika Chakrabarti

Comparative Philosophy

It is generally believed that the greatest asset of human being is the moral values and according to theist such values have been infused in human by the creator. By accepting such view we simply get rid of any effort of searching the origin of morality or ethics and also transfer the responsibility of being ethical on the almighty. But when atheist denied God, the liability of being moral comes to human and also the significant question arose why we should be moral. Probably more important is the hunt for the origin of our morality. In this article we have …


Book Review On Sculpting The Self: Islam, Selfhood And Human Flourishing (By Muhammad Faruque), Mohammad Azadpur Jan 2023

Book Review On Sculpting The Self: Islam, Selfhood And Human Flourishing (By Muhammad Faruque), Mohammad Azadpur

Comparative Philosophy

No abstract provided.


The Best Confucian Hybrid Meritocracy-Democracy For Liberal Democracies, John J. Park Jan 2023

The Best Confucian Hybrid Meritocracy-Democracy For Liberal Democracies, John J. Park

Comparative Philosophy

Several contemporary Confucian philosophers have posited differing hybrid views fusing meritocracy to democracy. There is a good deal of interest in a meritocracy in contemporary Confucian thought, and such a view perhaps should receive more serious consideration in liberal democratic thought since it may make for a stronger form of government when appended to democracy. In this paper, four contemporary hybrid theorists who combine elements of a meritocracy with a democracy are critically analyzed concerning an ability for their views to be instantiated in liberal democracies for the legislative branch only. Finally, I provide a modified hybrid view for the …


Social Justice In India: A Comparative Study Of Rawls And Ambedkar, Abinash Darnal Jan 2023

Social Justice In India: A Comparative Study Of Rawls And Ambedkar, Abinash Darnal

Comparative Philosophy

Justice has always been central to political philosophy over a period of time. No doubt, throughout the ages, countless philosophers have understood justice in different ways. Nevertheless, they have consented that a good society is a just society. Moreover, justice is a distributive concept and is concerned with the distribution of wealth, leisure, liberty, friendship, love, etc. Twentieth century justice came to be discussed usually in relation to social life in general, and the distribution of material rewards in particular and usually came to be known as ‘Social Justice’. Social justice as such came to be accepted as the fair …


Mexica Monism And Daoist Ethics In The Philosophy Of Gloria Anzaldúa, Saraliza Anzaldúa Jan 2023

Mexica Monism And Daoist Ethics In The Philosophy Of Gloria Anzaldúa, Saraliza Anzaldúa

Comparative Philosophy

Critical scholarship regarding the philosophy of Gloria Anzaldúa has proliferated in recent decades, especially in the fields of feminist theory, phenomenology, and epistemology. However, there is little analysis of the metaphysics which undergird their work and make possible their views on identity, experience, and community politics. First, this article will explore the significance of Anzaldúa’s ‘nos/otras’ and its relation to Mexica (Aztec) monistic metaphysics. Such a concept resists an us/them construction of the world because it situates the other as us: the Spanish word for ‘we’ is ‘nosotros’ and holds the ‘other/otros’ as its …


Harmony And Complementarity: A Discussion With Bo Mou, Chenyang Li Jul 2022

Harmony And Complementarity: A Discussion With Bo Mou, Chenyang Li

Comparative Philosophy

No abstract provided.


The Malagasy Ideal Of Fihavanana And Western Ethics, Casey Woodling Jul 2022

The Malagasy Ideal Of Fihavanana And Western Ethics, Casey Woodling

Comparative Philosophy

This essay explores various ethical dimensions of the important concept of fihavanana and its role in Malagasy ethics. As a first pass, we can say that fihavanana is a state of peace or harmony that people can achieve with others within their communities; it is modeled on the peace, harmony, solidarity, love, and closeness that is often seen in family ties. Understanding the role that fihavanana plays in the traditional ethics of the people of Madagascar does not come close to providing a complete picture of Malagasy ethics, but fihavanana is arguably the most crucial ethical concept for Malagasy. After …


Doing Philosophy Comparatively In China: Constructive Engagement Between Marxist, Western, And Chinese Traditional Philosophy (2000-2022), Hongyin Zhou, Jiabin Ye Jul 2022

Doing Philosophy Comparatively In China: Constructive Engagement Between Marxist, Western, And Chinese Traditional Philosophy (2000-2022), Hongyin Zhou, Jiabin Ye

Comparative Philosophy

Marxist philosophy, Western philosophy, and Chinese traditional philosophy constitute three main forces of contemporary Chinese philosophy. In the past two decades, a great deal of in-depth and extensive constructive engagement has been carried out among the three. Previous studies on such constructive engagement have focused on the perspectives of Western or Chinese traditional philosophy, while the perspective of Marxist philosophy has been neglected to a large extent. Given the key position of Marxist philosophy in contemporary Chinese philosophy, it is undoubtedly regrettable that such a perspective is missing. This paper aims to fill this gap in the perspective of examination …


Creolizing Modern Buddhism: A Reply To Yarran Hominh & A. Minh Nguyen, Evan Thompson Dec 2021

Creolizing Modern Buddhism: A Reply To Yarran Hominh & A. Minh Nguyen, Evan Thompson

Comparative Philosophy

In reply to Hominh and Nguyen, I argue that “creolizing” methods in the study and practice of Buddhism should not be opposed to historicist and contextualist modes of investigation and understanding. Rather, historicism and contextualism can and should inform creolizing approaches.


Cosmopolitanism, Creolization, And Non-Exceptionalist Buddhist Modernisms: On Evan Thompson’S Why I Am Not A Buddhist, Yarran Hominh, A. Minh Nguyen Dec 2021

Cosmopolitanism, Creolization, And Non-Exceptionalist Buddhist Modernisms: On Evan Thompson’S Why I Am Not A Buddhist, Yarran Hominh, A. Minh Nguyen

Comparative Philosophy

In his recent book, Why I Am Not a Buddhist, Evan Thompson argues that inter-tradition or cross-cultural philosophical dialogue ought to be governed by cosmopolitan conversational norms that do not subsume any one tradition’s deep commitments under those of any other tradition, but rather bring those commitments into the discussion so that they can be challenged and defended. He argues on this basis for the application of a deeply contextualist and historicist interpretive methodology to Buddhist texts, concepts, and theories in dialogue with philosophy and contemporary cognitive sciences. Buddhist modernism, in eschewing that deeply contextualist and historicist methodology, falls …


Sameness, Difference And Environmental Concern In The Metaphysics And Ethics Of Spinoza And Chan Buddhism, Michael Hemmingsen Dec 2021

Sameness, Difference And Environmental Concern In The Metaphysics And Ethics Of Spinoza And Chan Buddhism, Michael Hemmingsen

Comparative Philosophy

In this paper I contrast the metaphysical philosophies of Benedict de Spinoza and the ‘sudden enlightenment’ tradition of Chan Buddhism. Spinoza’s expressivist philosophy, in which everything can be conceived via a lineage of finite causes terminating in substance as a metaphysical ground of all things, emphasises the relative sameness of all entities. By contrast, Chan’s philosophy of emptiness, which rests on the dependent co-origination of all entities, renders such comparison fundamentally meaningless. Having no source beyond dependent co-origination to generate a thing’s distinct nature leads to a metaphysics in which, rather than being relatively similar or different, all things …


Moral Virtue And Inclusive Happiness: From Ancient To Recent In Western And Confucian Traditions, Shirong Luo Jul 2021

Moral Virtue And Inclusive Happiness: From Ancient To Recent In Western And Confucian Traditions, Shirong Luo

Comparative Philosophy

What is the relationship between moral virtue and happiness? Does having moral virtues make their possessors happy? Can one be happy without them? Philosophers provide diverging answers to these questions due to their different understandings of the concept of happiness which has multifarious meanings and senses. In this essay, I compare the representative Western theories of happiness with what may be called “a classical Confucian view” informed by recent scholarship on classical Confucianism. I argue that for classical Confucian philosophers, especially Confucius and Mencius, there are two kinds of happiness: exclusive (or unshared) and inclusive (or shared) happiness. I conclude …


A Unifying Pluralist Account Of Truth And The Case Of Chinese Philosophy Examined From The Cross-Tradition Engaging Vantage Point: Reply To Chenyang Li, Bo Mou Jul 2021

A Unifying Pluralist Account Of Truth And The Case Of Chinese Philosophy Examined From The Cross-Tradition Engaging Vantage Point: Reply To Chenyang Li, Bo Mou

Comparative Philosophy

No abstract provided.


Truth In Chinese Philosophy: A Commentary On Bo Mou’S Semantic-Truth Approaches In Chinese Philosophy, Chenyang Li Jul 2021

Truth In Chinese Philosophy: A Commentary On Bo Mou’S Semantic-Truth Approaches In Chinese Philosophy, Chenyang Li

Comparative Philosophy

No abstract provided.


Some Lessons On A Chronology Of 20th Century Philosophy In Mexico, Carlos Pereda Jul 2021

Some Lessons On A Chronology Of 20th Century Philosophy In Mexico, Carlos Pereda

Comparative Philosophy

The paper begins by criticizing the usual division of Latin America philosophy into three stages: founders, forgers and thecnicians. Then the history of philosophy in 20th in Mexico is narrated with the help of four maps that indicates the main positions and names. Towards the end, two kinds of lessons are drawn. The first is to promote the destruction of the vices of such a philosophy to regain its virtues. The second lesson comes from interpreting the metaphors of the previous maps: we are victims of shipwreckes living in archipielagos and thus we may explore their transitions.


Three Buddhist Distinctions Of Great Consequence For Cross-Cultural Philosophy Of Personal Identity, Antoine Panaïoti Jul 2021

Three Buddhist Distinctions Of Great Consequence For Cross-Cultural Philosophy Of Personal Identity, Antoine Panaïoti

Comparative Philosophy

This paper seeks to lay down the theoretical groundwork for the emergence of holistic cross-cultural philosophical investigations of personal identity ¾ investigations that approach the theoretical, phenomenological, psychological, and practical-ethical dimensions of selfhood as indissociable. My strategy is to discuss three closely connected conceptual distinctions that the Buddhist approach to personal identity urges us to draw, and a lucid understanding of which is essential for the emergence of appropriately comprehensive and thus genuinely cosmopolitan discussions at the cross-road between Western and Buddhist philosophical traditions. The first, primary distinction is that between the “visceral sense of self” (VSS) and the “substance …


Confucian Leadership Democracy: A Roadmap, Yutang Jin Jul 2021

Confucian Leadership Democracy: A Roadmap, Yutang Jin

Comparative Philosophy

What kind of polity is justified by classic Confucian values? Adopting an interpretive approach, this paper explores the idea of leadership democracy being expressive of classic Confucian values by first introducing the models of leadership democracy associated with Weber and Schumpeter and second connecting Confucian elitist values to them. I argue that leadership democracy best realizes the Confucian emphasis on the people as the source of legitimacy and the ruler as the engine of good governance. The Confucian idea of people-rootedness is borne out by citizens behaving as democratic plebeians who are empowered to choose their leader but devoid of …


In Search Of Buddhist Virtue: A Case For A Pluralist-Gradualist Moral Philosophy, Oren Hanner Jul 2021

In Search Of Buddhist Virtue: A Case For A Pluralist-Gradualist Moral Philosophy, Oren Hanner

Comparative Philosophy

Classical presentations of the Buddhist path prescribe the cultivation of various good qualities that are necessary for spiritual progress, from mindfulness (sati) and loving-kindness (metta) to faith (saddhā) and wisdom (paññā). Examining the way in which such qualities are described and classified in early Buddhism—with special reference to their treatment in the Visuddhimagga (Path of Purification) by the fifth-century Buddhist thinker Buddhaghosa—the present article employs a comparative method in order to identify the Buddhist catalog of virtues. The first part sketches the characteristics of virtue as analyzed by neo-Aristotelian theories. …


Social Roles And Psychological Continuity: Developing A Confucian-Psychological Continuity Hybrid Account Of Personal Identity And Ontology, Sammuel Byer Jul 2021

Social Roles And Psychological Continuity: Developing A Confucian-Psychological Continuity Hybrid Account Of Personal Identity And Ontology, Sammuel Byer

Comparative Philosophy

In this paper, I delineate a variety of questions related to personal identity and ontology. I develop and compare the Confucian conception of the person and the view of the person developed throughout Derek Parfit’s work on personal identity and ontology. I will demonstrate that the Confucian conception of the person has numerous instructive similarities with Parfit’s work on personal identity, despite a number of differences. I argue, briefly, that this project is worthwhile as a piece of comparative philosophy. One of the final two sections of the paper develop a new hybrid account of personal identity and ontology that …


Book Review On Marxism, China And Globalization (By Xu Changfu), Ian Hunt Jan 2021

Book Review On Marxism, China And Globalization (By Xu Changfu), Ian Hunt

Comparative Philosophy

No abstract provided.


Gaps: When Not Even Nothing Is There, Charles Blattberg Jan 2021

Gaps: When Not Even Nothing Is There, Charles Blattberg

Comparative Philosophy

A paradox, it is claimed, is a radical form of contradiction, one that produces gaps in meaning. In order to approach this idea, two senses of “separation” are distinguished: separation by something and separation by nothing. The latter does not refer to nothing in an ordinary sense, however, since in that sense what’s intended is actually less than nothing. Numerous ordinary nothings in philosophy as well as in other fields are surveyed so as to clarify the contrast. Then follows the suggestion that philosophies which one would expect to have room for paradoxes actually tend either to exclude them altogether …


Respect And The Mengzian Conception Of Yi As A Rule-Related Virtue, Meng Zhang Jul 2020

Respect And The Mengzian Conception Of Yi As A Rule-Related Virtue, Meng Zhang

Comparative Philosophy

This paper focuses on Meng Zi’s idea of yi () as a virtue. In it, I first briefly examine two influential interpretations of yi – the “appropriateness” approach that views yi as a disposition to do what is fitting in a given situation and the shame-centered approach that understands yi as a disposition to avoid what is shameful in the moral life. The first approach is too thin to distinguish yi from acting properly in general and the second reading confines the definitive feeling involved in yi to a too moralized understanding of shame. Moreover, both fail to …


An Intercultural Dialogue Between Confucianism And Western Philosophies Concerning Approaches To Family: A Report From A Workshop, Muzi Marilyn Fang Aug 2019

An Intercultural Dialogue Between Confucianism And Western Philosophies Concerning Approaches To Family: A Report From A Workshop, Muzi Marilyn Fang

Comparative Philosophy

No abstract provided.