In Search of the Way - by Wejen Chang (Paperback)

About the Book

Analyses the influence of eight classic Chinese thinkers on the development of Chinese law: Confucius, Laozi, Mozi, Zhuangzi, Mencius, Xunzi, Shang Yang and Han Fei. These thinkers helped found the Confucian, Daoist, Mohist and Legalist schools of thought, and their ideas continue to guide China's law, philosophy and society.

Book Synopsis

Wejen Chang brings a fresh perspective to the most prominent Chinese classical philosophers - Confucius, Laozi, Mozi, Zhuangzi, Mencius, Xunzi, Lord Shang and Han Fei. These thinkers founded or influenced the Confucian, Daoist, Mohist and Legalist schools of thought, and their ideas continue to guide China's thinking and behaviour today. He shows how these thinkers addressed the key question of how philosophical thinking can serve humanity and society. Chang systematically presents their different solutions and evaluates them according to reason and experience, helping you to understand the philosophical roots of law and Chinese law in particular.

From the Back Cover

'Anyone and everyone interested in the foundations of Chinese thought about law and legal institutions should applaud the publication of In Search of the Way by Wejen Chang. It is the culmination of a lifetime of learning and deep reflection by an extraordinary scholar, and replete with enormous insight and wisdom.' 'William P. Alford, Henry L. Stimson Professor of Law and Vice Dean for the Graduate Program and International Legal Studies, Harvard Law School' In their search for a just society what did the classic Chinese thinkers have to say about law as a norm? In a period of about five centuries before the Qin Dynasty (221-207 BCE), China went through dramatic social, economic and political changes. People were losing faith in the old norms and institutions and suffered disorientation, chaos and misery. Many intellectuals sought a resolution to this situation. Eight among them were the most diligent in this quest - Confucius, Laozi, Mozi, Zhuangzi, Mencius, Xunzi, Lord Shang and Han Fei. For them the key question was how philosophical thinking could help serve humanity and society in any way. The eight thinkers offered different answers and this book attempts to present their answers systematically and evaluate them according to reason and experience. These eight classical thinkers helped found the Confucian, the Daoist, the Mohist and the Legalist schools, whose ideas have guided China's development for over three millennia and still influence Chinese thinking and behaviour today. Here, Wejen Chang brings a fresh perspective to their theories to make more understandable the historical roots of law and the comparative lessons from such inquiry. Wejen Chang is one of only a few of his contemporaries to have had traditional Chinese education in his youth learning the Classics exclusively. He studied law and political science in Taiwan and received an LL.M. from Yale and an SJD from Harvard. Following research at Academia Sinica, Taiwan, he has taught Chinese legal history and jurisprudence in Taiwan (Taiwan University), China (Peking and Tsinghua universities), the US (UCLA, Harvard, NYU) and Europe (Collège de France, Leuven Catholic University). Cover image: iStockphoto.com. Characters translate as In Search of the Way Cover design: Michael Chatfield [EUP logo] www.euppublishing.com

Review Quotes

[Professor Chang] has produced a work of erudition and honesty that will help readers think for themselves about the continuing relevance of ancient Chinese ideas.--Hugh T. Scogin, Jr., NYU School of Law "New York University Journal of International Law and Politics"

Anyone and everyone interested in the foundations of Chinese thought about law and legal institutions should applaud the publication of In Search of the Way by Professor Chang Wejen. It is the culmination of a lifetime of learning and deep reflection by an extraordinary scholar, and replete with enormous insight and wisdom.--William P. Alford, Harvard Law School

In this magnum opus, the deeper roots of the Chinese legal culture are revealed.--Jacques H. Herbots, Catholic University of Leuven

Professor Wejen Chang's eagerly anticipated survey of ancient Chinese legal philosophy makes a key contribution to the study of Chinese law, a field increasingly important in a world where the future of Asia is a central concern ... The structure and content of In Search of the Way enable the non-specialist reader to enter that thought world and become a participant in an ongoing dialogue on the questions raised in the ancient texts.--Hugh T. Scogin, Jr., NYU School of Law

What we bear witness to in reading this book is a brilliant conversation among these ancient thinkers, orchestrated and gently probed by the author in a way that brings them to life and illuminates their relative strengths and weaknesses, similarities and differences. The works of the authors - Lun-yu, Laozi, Mozi, Zhuangzi, Mengzi, Xunzi, Shang-jun-shu and Han-fei-zi - covered each in their own way grapple with fundamental questions ranging from the meaning of life and humanity's place in the universe, to the nature of continuity and change in human relations and the sources of normativity in social life. So, while this book can be read on one level as a detailed survey of the history of ancient Chinese legal thought, it is on another level nothing less than an investigation into the human condition.--Scott Veitch, University of Hong Kong

About the Author

Wejen Chang is one of only a few of his contemporaries to have had traditional Chinese education in youth learning the Classics exclusively. He studied law and political science in Taiwan and received an LL.M. from Yale and an SJD from Harvard. Following research at Academia Sinica, Taiwan, he has taught Chinese legal history and jurisprudence in Taiwan (Taiwan University), China (Peking and Tsinghua universities), the US (UCLA, Harvard, NYU) and Europe (Collège de France, Leuven Catholic University).