Confucian Role Ethics：A Vocabulary

In this landmark work, noted comparative philosopher Roger T. Ames interprets how the classics of the Confucian canon portray the authentic, ethical human being. He argues that many distinguished commentators on Confucian ethics have explained the fundamental ideas and terms of this distinctively Chinese philosophy by superimposing Western concepts and categories, effectively collapsing this rich tradition into a subcategory of "virtue ethics." Beginning by addressing the problem of responsible cultural comparisons, Ames then formulates the interpretive context necessary to locate the texts within their own cultural ambiance. Exploring the relational notion of "person" that grounds Confucian philosophy, he pursues a nuanced understanding of the cluster of terms through which Confucian role ethics is expressed. Drawing on Western and Chinese sources, Ames provides a convincing argument that the only way to understand the Confucian vision of the consummate life is to take the tradition on its own terms.

Roger T. Ames is a professor in the Department of Philosophy at the University of Hawai'i at manoa. He has been Visiting Professor at National Taiwan University, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, and Peking University, as well as a fellow of Clare Hall, University of Cambridge. He has authored, edited, and translated some thirty books, and is the editor of the academic journal Philosophy East and West.