Selected Poems of So Chongju

by David McCann

Overview

A record of the words and teachings of Confucius, The Analects is considered the most reliable expression of Confucian thought. However, the original meaning of Confucius's teachings have been filtered and interpreted by the commentaries of Confucianists of later ages, particularly the Neo-Confucianists of the Song dynasty, not altogether without distortion.

In this monumental translation by Professor D. C. Lau, an attempt has been made to interpret the sayings as they stand. The corpus of the sayings is taken as an organic whole and the final test of the interpretation rests on the internal consistency it exhibits. In other words, The Analects is read in the light of The Analects.This results in a truer understanding of Confucius' thought than the traditional interpretation and paves the way for a re-assessment of its importance in the history of Chinese thought and its relevance to the present day world.

This volume also contains an introduction to the life and teachings of Confucius, and three appendices on the events in the life of Confucius, on his disciples, and on the composition of The Analects.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780231067942
Publisher:	Columbia University Press
Publication date:	01/25/1989
Series:	Modern Asian Literature Series
Pages:	129
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x (d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

David R. McCann is Korea Foundation Professor Emeritus of Korean Literature at Harvard University. His books of translations of Korean poetry include The Temple of Words: An Anthology of Modern Korean Buddhist Poetry (Jogye Order of Korean Buddhism, 2017), Azaleas, Poems by Kim Sowŏl (Columbia University Press, 2007), Enough to Say It’s Far, Poems by Pak Chaesam (with Jiwon
Shin; Princeton University Press, Lockert Library of Poetry in Translation, 2006), Traveler Maps: Poems by Ko Un (Tamal Vista Press, 2004); and The Columbia Anthology of Modern Korean Poetry (Columbia University Press, 2004).