Sarah A. Queen - Böcker

Every general account of the development of Chinese thought makes mention of Tung Chung-shu (c. 195-105 bce) as one of the pivotal philosophers of the Han. Professor Queen's accomplishment is a meticulous dissection of Tung Chung-shu's major work. The Luxuriant Gems of the Spring and Autumn Annals (Ch'un-ch'iu fan lu) established the first state-sponsored Confucian Canon, and created an ideal of the ruler and his role in government that was central to political discussion for two thousand years. The author has carefully scrutinised this text for authenticity, and has concluded that it was compiled several centuries after Tung's death, but was mostly compiled from Tung's authentic writings. By historicising this important text, Queen allows a new view of Tung's relation to the political and doctrinal discourses of his day, and also addresses the role of scriptures in Confucian spirituality.

Every general account of the development of Chinese thought makes mention of Tung Chung-shu (c. 195-105 bce) as one of the pivotal philosophers of the Han. Professor Queen's accomplishment is a meticulous dissection of Tung Chung-shu's major work. The Luxuriant Gems of the Spring and Autumn Annals (Ch'un-ch'iu fan lu) established the first state-sponsored Confucian Canon, and created an ideal of the ruler and his role in government that was central to political discussion for two thousand years. The author has carefully scrutinised this text for authenticity, and has concluded that it was compiled several centuries after Tung's death, but was mostly compiled from Tung's authentic writings. By historicising this important text, Queen allows a new view of Tung's relation to the political and doctrinal discourses of his day, and also addresses the role of scriptures in Confucian spirituality.

Analyzes the use of anecdotes as an essential rhetorical tool and form of persuasion in various literary genres in early China.Between History and Philosophy is the first book-length study in English to focus on the rhetorical functions and forms of anecdotal narratives in early China. Edited by Paul van Els and Sarah A. Queen, this volume advances the thesis that anecdotes-brief, freestanding accounts of single events involving historical figures, and occasionally also unnamed persons, animals, objects, or abstractions-served as an essential tool of persuasion and meaning-making within larger texts. Contributors to the volume analyze the use of anecdotes from the Warring States Period to the Han Dynasty, including their relations to other types of narrative, their circulation and reception, and their central position as a mode of argumentation in a variety of historical and philosophical literary genres.