For many people, orthodoxy in late imperial China means Confucianism, or more precisely, Neo-Confucianism. Unlike most studies of Chinese values, which approach the subject as a philosophical and religious system, this book focuses on the interaction between Neo-Confucian beliefs and Chinese political and social institutions. It reveals a Confucianism that stood for far more than mere benevolent government, individual morality, and scholarly cultivation. In the essays presented here, Confucian idealism and transcendence become part of a system of sacred obligations and loyalties operating in the context of the imperial state and the family. These careful case studies examine many facets of late imperial society to create a complex picture of Chinese life. Among other things, they provide a look at the official worship system, mid-Ch'ing scholarly academies, the special status of tenants/servants, and the lineage feuds that were rampant on the southeast coast. The authors bring out the cultural significance of state and family rituals. They depict worried patriarchs composing instructions for the guidance of their children and country magistrates prescribing punishments according to the ritual status of the culprit. A debate between two viewpoints develops: Was orthodoxy a "mode of statecraft," or was it one of the ultimate concerns not only of the Confucian schools but of mainstream Taoism and Buddhism as well? The authors argue that Chinese civilization was characterized by religious and philosophical pluralism and moral orthodoxy. The implications they see for a socioethical doctrine supported by and in support of political authority will be of interest to students of comparative history and civilization. This title is part of UC Press's Voices Revived program, which commemorates University of California Press's mission to seek out and cultivate the brightest minds and give them voice, reach, and impact. Drawing on a backlist dating to 1893, Voices Revived makes high-quality, peer-reviewed scholarship accessible once again using print-on-demand technology. This title was originally published in 1990.

Ten international academics explore heterodoxy dissent challenging the beliefs and meanings of the established norm in late Imperial China. In this process, they trace the origins of the cultural and intellectual protests to aspects of Daoism and Buddhism in the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911)

Following the prohibition of missionary activity after 1724, China's Christians were effectively cut off from all foreign theological guidance. The ensuing isolation forced China's Christian communities to become self-reliant in perpetuating the basic principles of their faith. Left to their own devices, the missionary seed developed into a panoply of indigenous traditions, with Christian ancestry as the common denominator. Christianity thus underwent the same process of inculturation as previous religious traditions in China, such as Buddhism and Judaism. As the guardian of orthodox morality, the prosecuting state sought to exercise all-pervading control over popular thoughts and social functions. Filling the gap within the discourse of Christianity in China and also as part of the wider analysis of religion in late Imperial China, this study presents the campaigns against Christians during this period as part and parcel of the campaign against 'heresy' and 'heretical' movements in general.

In this multidimensional analysis, Benjamin A. Elman uses over a thousand newly available examination records from the Yuan, Ming, and Ch'ing dynasties, 1315-1904, to explore the social, political, and cultural dimensions of the civil examination system, one of the most important institutions in Chinese history. For over five hundred years, the most important positions within the dynastic government were usually filled through these difficult examinations, and every other year some one to two million people from all levels of society attempted them. Covering the late imperial system from its inception to its demise, Elman revises our previous understanding of how the system actually worked, including its political and cultural machinery, the unforeseen consequences when it was unceremoniously scrapped by modernist reformers, and its long-term historical legacy. He argues that the Ming-Ch'ing civil examinations from 1370 to 1904 represented a substantial break with T'ang-Sung dynasty literary examinations from 650 to 1250. Late imperial examinations also made "Tao Learning," Neo-Confucian learning, the dynastic orthodoxy in official life and in literati culture. The intersections between elite social life, popular culture, and religion that are also considered reveal the full scope of the examination process throughout the late empire.

Homoerotic Sensibilities in Late Imperial China is the richest exploration to date of late imperial Chinese literati interest in male love. Employing primary sources such as miscellanies, poetry, fiction and 'flower guides', Wu Cuncun argues that male homoeroticism played a central role in the cultural life of late imperial Chinese literati elites. Countering recent arguments that homosexuality was marginal and disparaged during this period, the book also seeks to trace the relationship of homoeroticism to status and power. In addition to historical portraits and analysis, the book also advances the concept of 'sensibilities' as a method for interpreting the complex range of homoerotic texts produced in late imperial China.

"Opening up questions about women's lives, about gender, about why we read history at all and how we write it, Patricia Buckley Ebrey has made The Inner Quarters a place we need to enter."—from the Foreword

This is a collection of essays by one of the leading scholars of Chinese history, it explores features of the Chinese family, gender and kinship systems and places them in a historical context.

Is it possible that the familiar and beloved figure of Confucius was invented by Jesuit priests? Based on specific documentary evidence, historian Lionel Jensen reveals how 16th- and 17th-century Western missionaries used translations of the ancient RU tradition to invent the presumably historical figure who has been globally celebrated as philosopher, prophet, statesman, wise man, and saint. 13 illustrations.

There is a flourishing literature on citizenship education in China that is mostly unknown in the West. Liberal political theorists often assume that only in democracy should citizens be prepared for their future responsibilities, yet citizenship education in China has undergone a number of transformations as the political system has sought to cope with market reforms, globalization and pressures both externally and within the country for broader political reforms. Over the past decade, Chinese scholars have been struggling for official recognition of citizenship education as a key component of the school curriculum in these changing contexts. This book analyzes the citizenship education issues under discussion within China, and aims to provide a voice for its scholars at a time when China’s international role is becoming increasingly important.

The central theme of this volume is the Chinese concept of chiao-hua, "Transformation by Instruction": the ancient idea that moral guidance in all spheres of life is one of the most essential tasks of leadership at all levels, from the central government down to local elites. Within this general perspective nineteen scholars of various disciplinary backgrounds have treated topics ranging from the regulation of conspicuous consumption in Ming times to ritualization of protest in recent times. In many cases a surprising degree of cultural continuity can be observed; on the other hand, due attention has also been paid to clashes between traditional Chinese (notably Confucian) norms and the demands of modernization in contemporary Chinese society.