如何在西方哲学语境中做中国哲学：以儒学研究为例

在西方哲学背景中研究中国哲学,其核心问题是西方哲学家为什么要关心中国哲学,或者能够从中国哲学中学到什么东西。因此从事这种研究的学者所要做的就不能是简单地比较中西哲学的异同,指出各自的优劣,而应该首先对西方哲学家所关心的问题及其代表性的观点,以及这些观点可能存在的问题有所了解,并在此基础上看中国传统哲学在这些问题上是否有比西方哲学更好的观点。由于这种研究属于比较研究,在转向这种研究方法之前首先要讨论一般意义上的比较哲学的可能性。

How to Do Chinese Philosophy in a Western Philosophical Context. A Case Study of Confucianism Research

This paper aims to introduce a unique approach to Chinese philosophy in a Western philosophical context. The centralquestion of such an approach is why a Western philosopher ought to care about, or what he or she can learn from, Chinese philoso-phy. For this reason, instead of comparing and contrasting some aspects of Chinese and Western philosophy, as is usually done, acomparativist should first be familiar with the issues Western philosophers are interested in, the representative views that they havedeveloped on each of these issues, and any problems, if there are, with each of these views, and then try to see whether Chinesephilosophers have anything, not only new but also better, to say on any of such issues. Since this approach is inevitably compara-tive, this presentation is preceded by a discussion of the possibility of comparative philosophy; and since such a methodologicaldiscussion is necessarily abstract, it is followed by a case study adopting such an approach to Chinese philosophy.