The Zhuangzi on Coping with Society

Stories in the Zhuangzi detailing expert artisans and other extraordinary people are often read as celebrations of “skills” or “knacks.” In this paper, I will argue that they would be more accurately understood as “coping” stories. Taken as a celebration of one’s “skill” or “knack” they transform th...

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Détails bibliographiques
Auteur principal: D'Ambrosio, Paul J. (Auteur)
Type de support: Électronique Article
Langue:Anglais
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Publié: Wiley-Blackwell [2020]
Dans: Journal of religious ethics
Année: 2020, Volume: 48, Numéro: 3, Pages: 474-497
Sujets / Chaînes de mots-clés standardisés:B Zhuangzi 365 avant J.-C.-290 avant J.-C. / Gesellschaftliche Organisation / Intégration sociale
RelBib Classification:AB Philosophie de la religion
AD Sociologie des religions
BM Religions chinoises
NCB Éthique individuelle
NCC Éthique sociale
Sujets non-standardisés:B Zhuangzi
B genuine pretending
B Identity
B skill stories
B knack stories
B Vocation
Accès en ligne: Volltext (Verlag)
Volltext (doi)
Description
Résumé:Stories in the Zhuangzi detailing expert artisans and other extraordinary people are often read as celebrations of “skills” or “knacks.” In this paper, I will argue that they would be more accurately understood as “coping” stories. Taken as a celebration of one’s “skill” or “knack” they transform the Zhuangzi into an implicit advocate of conforming to, or even identifying with, one’s social roles. I will argue that the stories of artisans and extraordinarily skilled people are less about cultivating one’s talents so as to “find one’s calling,” better fulfill social expectations, or achieve oneness with Dao, than they are concerned with developing strategies for coping with natural and social contingencies. Read in this way, there is much to learn from the Zhuangzi when reflecting on contemporary social and political issues, especially those related to meritocratic hubris.
ISSN:1467-9795
Contient:Enthalten in: Journal of religious ethics
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1111/jore.12321