“Paolo Santangelo’s Individual Autonomy and Responsibility in Late Imperial China is a timely masterpiece on the hotly debated issue of Chinese individualism in Confucian tradition. Building on his knowledgeable survey of the secondary literature, Paolo Santangelo adeptly brings several studies with different perspectives into an insightful conversation representing the past and recent debates on the terms and cultural contexts relevant to personal autonomy and moral responsibility. His strong grasp of the literature forms a solid foundation of his own interpretation of the subject from a broad array of primary sources, such as literary, philosophical, and religious texts. A major strength of the book is its comparative perspective. Santangelo not only compares and contrasts the terms and reflections within Buddhist, Confucian, and Daoist contexts, but he also expertly brings Western concepts into conversation with the East Asian constructions of self, destiny, shame, and pleasure. He also demonstrates the change and continuity of the terms and concepts throughout the time through comparisons between the Ming-Qing period and the pre-Qin period. This book is a successful ‘rediscovery’ of the individualism in Chinese culture.” —Guotong Li, California State University, Long Beach

Paolo Santangelo is Professor Emeritus of East Asian history at Sapienza University of Roma, and Editor-in-Chief of Ming Qing Studies. His books include Sentimental Education in Chinese History: An Interdisciplinary Textual Research in Ming and Qing Sources, Materials for an Anatomy of Personality in Late Imperial China, Shan’ge, the ‘Mountain Songs’: Love Songs in Ming China (coauthored with Oki Yasushi), Zibuyu, “What the Master Would Not Discuss”, according to Yuan Mei (1716-1798): A Collection of Supernatural Stories (in cooperation with Yan Beiwen), Passion, Romance and Qing: The World of Emotions and States of Mind in Peony Pavilion (coauthored with Tian Yuan Tan), Revisiting Liaozhai zhiyi, and The Culture of Love in China and Europe (with Gábor Boros).

Prologue

Introduction

Part I: Tension Toward Personal Autonomy in the Confucian Tradition

Chapter 1: Two Cases of Heroism and Intolerance

Chapter 2: Some Terms of the Question

Chapter 3: Impermanent Unity and Fragility of Individual Boundaries

Chapter 4: Human Dignity

Chapter 5: Past and Recent Debates

Chapter 6: New and Old Elements on the Centrality of Self

Chapter 7: Further Developments

Part II: The Sense of Responsibility in Ming and Qing Confucianism

Chapter 8: Questions on Moral Responsibility

Chapter 9: Heaven, Destiny, Mind, and Will

Chapter 10: Preliminary Conclusions

Bibliography

Index