Books by Confucius
The Analects (The Illustrated Library of Chinese Classics)
Confucius, C.C. Tsai (illustrator), Brian Bruya (translator), Michael Puett (foreword)
“It’s not written by Confucius himself. It is more a collection of anecdotes of how he engaged his students, almost in dialogue form. And in them, he comes off as a very charming, humorous figure, not at all dogmatic and very modern. I think that’s partly why he’s been so influential. There’s this view that Confucius was a conformist, but that’s partly because of the way Confucianism has been misused throughout Chinese history…The Confucians are not in favour of conformity at all. Indeed one of the most famous sayings from the Analects is: ‘Exemplary persons should pursue harmony but not conformity.’ Harmony really is this idea that you have differences – explained by metaphors like: very tasty dishes composed of many different ingredients that are bland on their own but together they combine to form this delicious dish; or else music, where you have one instrument that sounds OK on its own but when it’s combined with other instruments it produces a beautiful harmony. Confucius himself, if you look at his model as an educator, very much encouraged a constant questioning and constant self-improvement and definitely not a conformist attitude to learning. Rather the opposite I’d say.” Read more...
Daniel A. Bell, Philosopher
Interviews where books by Confucius were recommended
The best books on Aphorisms, recommended by Andrew Hui
The unexamined life is not worth living; nature loves to hide; you can’t step in the same river twice. No doubt we’ve all grown up hearing aphorisms, but perhaps we take their importance for granted. Andrew Hui, the author of the first full book on the theory of the aphorism, guides us through the history of the short philosophical saying from Heraclitus to Nietzsche and beyond.
The Best Chinese Philosophy Books, recommended by Michael Puett
What do the sages of ancient China have to teach us about living in the 21st century? The Harvard professor and author of The Path, Michael Puett, recommends the texts you need to read to find out. He picks the best Chinese philosophy books.
The best books on Confucius, recommended by Daniel A. Bell
As Confucianism makes a comeback in China, Daniel A. Bell, a professor of philosophy at Tsinghua University in Beijing, lists which books to read for an understanding of Confucius and his legacy.
