Modern Perspective The Mou Philosophy

This thesis focuses on Mou Tzung-san's philosophy in the horizon of Modernity, intends to reveal the complicated relation between Mou's philosophy and the Modernity. To face this complex question of modernity in Chinese context, it studies Mou Tzung-san's way of thinking, tries to find out its contributions and inner disadvantages, and on the foundation of all these works, rethinks the possible solution of the construction of "Chinese modernity".Chapter I arranges the origin of the concept "Modernity", its basic characteristics and the development of it in western contexts as well as in native China. We examine the dialectic relation between the universal essence of Modernity and particular cultural contexts, insisting on the idea of "Multiple modernities". As the Modernity paradigm origins from western culture, the Western modernity has a typical meaning, the development of it shows huge achievements, and reveals deep problems as well. Comparative to this, the "Chinese modernity" has the characteristic of backwardness, and as a result expresses the interlacement of "epoch request" and "national identity" in the culture.Chapter II reveals Mou's basic concerning of Modernity in the aspect of culture. With the true feeling of "Modem times", Mou Tzung-san shows distinct consciousness of Modernity, deals it in the philosophical thought of "Universality" and "Particularity", and explores the inner relation between Modernity and Chinese cultural tradition. Standing on the point of cultural conservatism, Mou maintains considerable tension with Western modernity, which could be found out in his restrictions of "Modernization" and the theory of "Pan-Jiao" on western culture.Chapter III examines the characteristics of modernity in Mou's philosophy from the aspect of philosophical ideas. With the illumination of Confucian tradition as a foundation, Mou Tzung-san admits the spirit of Modernity in three aspects as the "Subjectivity", "Unity of the world" and "Finality of history", which refers to the categories and structures from Kant' and Hegel's philosophy, and shows the characteristic of combining Chinese and Western thought. In the first aspect, he combines the spirits of subjectivity in Chinese and Western philosophy, emphasizing the characteristic of moral subject which is "immanent at the same time transcendent"; In the second aspect, he inherits the worldview of Holism while containing the differentiation from Modernity and trying to reconstruct the new unity of the world dialectically as well; In the third aspect, he draws the idea of evolution from Modernity into Confucian historical philosophy, builds the "Moral-historical teleology", proofing the historical necessity of realizing Modernity with the finality of the spirit's development.Chapter IV inspects the specific theoretical steps realizing the ideas, to show the interaction between Mou's philosophy and modernity. On one hand, Mou centers on "Innate conscience" and absorbs the basic philosophical ideas of Modernity, to reconstruct system of Confucian philosophy in modern society; On the other hand, he stands on Confucian value, deeply criticizes Western modernity from aspects of "instrumental rationality", "formalism in ethics" and "political liberalism", and points out the possibility of Chinese modernity's transcending current west pattern and curing its shortcomings.Chapter V gives the overall valuation of Mou's philosophy in the view of "Multiple modernities", and analyzes its enlightenments and significance to the construction of modern Chinese philosophy. Mou Tzung-san philosophically seeks the proper pattern of Chinese modernity, and emphasizes national character of Chinese culture. This way of thinking has positive significance, but also deep problems. The fundamental significance of Mou's philosophy is: showing the characteristic of "Spiritualism" in Chinese philosophy distinctly, which in fact reveals multiple forms of philosophy, so as to establish the subjectivity of Chinese philosophy and provide positive enlightenments of the construction of Chinese modernity.