Non-humans in the Zhuangzi: Animalism and anti-anthropocentrism
Some argue that animals and non-human figures in the Zhuangzi help displace the significance of humans. According to others the Zhuangzi suggests a certain time of ‘animalism,’ asking us to be more like various types of fauna and flora that do not share our self-centeredness. In this paper the use o...
| Published in: | Asian philosophy |
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| Main Author: | |
| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Carfax
2022
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| In: |
Asian philosophy
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| Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains: | B
Zhuangzi 365 BC-290 BC
/ Plants
/ Animals
/ Anthropocentrism
/ Rejection of
/ Zhu, Xi 1130-1200, Lunyu-jizhu
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| RelBib Classification: | AD Sociology of religion; religious policy BM Chinese universism; Confucianism; Taoism KBM Asia |
| Further subjects: | B
Zhuangzi
B Anthropocentrism B Animals B Daoism B Chinese philosophy B Chuang-Tzu |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Summary: | Some argue that animals and non-human figures in the Zhuangzi help displace the significance of humans. According to others the Zhuangzi suggests a certain time of ‘animalism,’ asking us to be more like various types of fauna and flora that do not share our self-centeredness. In this paper the use of non-human characters in the Zhuangzi will be examined through a survey of traditional Chinese commentary, comparisons with the Lunyu, and placing the use of non-human characters within the larger context of the Zhuangzi. Thus we find that while anti-anthropocentric and animalistic perspectives can be philosophized with the Zhuangzi, the text itself is not overly concerned with these subjects. Animals and non-human characters are mainly allegorical or metaphorical, allowing the Zhuangzito 1) make broadly applicable arguments; 2) playfully discuss ideas that may be unappealing at first glance, and; 3) create a distance that allows the text to resist ossification. |
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| ISSN: | 1469-2961 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Asian philosophy
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1080/09552367.2021.1934218 |