The book presents Chinese historical thinking by four articles. It is covered the ancient origin and the development to modernity and is commented by seven international experts. Presentation and comments find “second thought” by three other international scholars, and at the end the whole discussion find an answer by the authors of the first presentations. The complex structure of argumentation documents not only various ideas and interpretations of Chinese historical thinking, but represent the possibilities and problems of intercultural comparison at the same time.
Foreword
Huang Chun-chieh and Jörn Rüsen
Introduction
I. Presentations
Huang Chun-chieh
1. Historical Discourses in Traditional Chinese Historical Writings: Historiography as Philosophy
Huang Chun-chieh
2. Historical Thinking as Humanistic Thinking in Traditional China
Wong Young-tsu
3. Humanism in Traditional Chinese Historiography – With Special Reference to the Grand Historian Sima Qian
Hu Chang-Tze
4. On the Transformation of Historical Thinking in Modern China
II. Comments
Achim Mittag
5. Cultural Differences as an Inspirational Source of Historical Knowledge – Random Notes on Three Approaches to Chinese Comparative Historiography
Fritz-Heiner Mutschler
6. Ancient Historiographies Compared
Peter Burke
7. Two Traditions of Historiography
Helwig Schmidt-Glintzer
8. Humanistic Tradition and the Concept of a “National History” in China
Stefan Berger
9. National History and Humanism: Reflections on a Difficult Relationship
Jörn Rüsen
10. Commenting on Chinese Historical Thinking – a Multifaceted Approach
Ulrich Timme Kragh
11. Dogmas of Superficiality: The Episteme of Humanism in Writings by Taiwanese Historians Huang Chun-chieh, Wong Young-tsu, and Hu Chang-Tze
III. Second Thoughts
Ng On-cho
12. Enshrining the Past in the Present: Moral Agency and Humanistic History
Q. Edward Wang
13. The Great Divergence in Historiography – Reflections on Chinese and Western Historiographical Developments
Susanne Weigelin-Schwiedrzik
14. Some Comments on the Difficulty of Engaging in Intercultural Dialogue
IV. Responses
Huang Chun-chieh
15. Some Notes on Chinese Historical Thinking
Wong Young-tsu
16. Historical Thinking East and West – Let the Twain Meet
Hu Chang-Tze
17. Giving Modern Chinese Historical Thinking Back its Authenticity
Huang Chun-chieh/Jörn Rüsen
18. A Final Remark
List of Contributors
Bibliography
Index