This volume examines the values that have historically guided the negotiation of identity, both practical and ideal, in Chinese Confucian culture, considers how these values play into the conception and exercise of authority, and assesses their contemporary relevance in a rapidly globalizing world. Included are essays that explore the rule of ritual in classical Confucian political discourse; parental authority in early medieval tales; authority in writings on women; authority in the great and long-beloved folk novel of China Journey to the West; and the anti-Confucianism of Lu Xun, the twentieth-century writer and reformer. By examining authority in cultural context, these essays shed considerable light on the continuities and contentions underlying the vibrancy of Chinese culture.While of interest to individual scholars and students, the book also exemplifies the merits of a thematic (rather than geographic or area studies) approach to incorporating Asian content throughout the curriculum. This approach provides increased opportunities for cross-cultural comparison and a forum for encouraging values-centered conversation in the classroom.

Introduction: Confucian Cultures of Authority Peter D. Hershock and Roger T. Ames 1. Two Loci of Authority: Autonomous Individuals and Related Persons Henry Rosemont Jr. 2. Intimate Authority: The Rule of Ritual in Classical Confucian Political Discourse Tao Jiang 3. The Wei (Positioning)-Ming (Naming)- Lianmian (Face)-Guanxi (Relationship)-Renqing (Humanized Feelings) Complex in Contemporary Chinese Culture Wenshan Jia 4. Creeping Absolutism: Parental Authority as Seen in Early Medieval Tales of Filial Offspring Keith N. Knapp 5. Virtue (de), Talent (cai), and Beauty (se): Authoring a Full-fledged Womanhood in Lienuzhuan (Biographies of Women) Robin R. Wang 6. Aspects of Authority in Wu Cheng'en's Journey to the West Roberta E. Adams 7. Establishing Authority through Scholarship: Ruan Yuan and the Xuehaitang Academy Steven B. Miles 8. Intellectual and Political Controversies over Authority in China: 1898-1922 Lawrence R. Sullivan 9. Ought We Throw the Confucian Baby Out with the Authoritarian Bathwater?: A Critical Inquiry into Lu Xun's Anti-Confucian Identity Virginia Suddath List of Contributors Index