Three Ways of Thought in Ancient China

First published in 1939. This book consists chiefly of extracts from Chuang Tzu, Mencius and Han Fei Tzu. Chuang Tzu's appeal is to the imagination; the appeal of mencius is to the moral feelings; realism, as expounded by Han Fei Tzu, finds a close parallel in modern Totalitarianism and as a result these extracts from a book of the third century B.C. nonetheless have a very contemporary connection.

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LibraryThing member aarhusian

Arthur Waley was a self-taught scholar, best known for his translations of Chinese and Japanese poetry and "The Tale of Genji" and "The Pillow Book of Sei Shonagon". The "Three Ways" cover Taoist, Confucianist (in the form taught by Mencius) and Realist thought (the latter is more commonly called

'Legalism') around the time of the Ch'in Dynasty - 255 to 206 BC - when China first coalesced into empire. Inspired selections are punctuated by Waley's wry sense of humour and the parallels he draws to 20th century totalitarian forms of government. The book is flawed, however, by lack of ambition, a point Waley admits in the epilogue where he excuses himself for not providing more historical context and advocates instead in favour of a division of labour between translator and historian. More likely, Waley wasn't up to the task of linking his research to the emerging historical scholarship on ancient China. Associated with Bloomsbury, where he also lived, Waley never traveled to the Orient.

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LibraryThing member Arctic-Stranger

Good overview of sources for Taoism, Confucianism and Mencius. A bit dated, and the translation is clunky compared to some more modern versions, but a pretty decent buy if you can find it.

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