Archery Metaphor and Ritual in Early Confucian Texts

Rina Marie Camus (Autor)

Buch | Hardcover

132 Seiten

2020
Lexington Books (Verlag)
978-1-4985-9720-3 (ISBN)

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This book explores the significance of archery as ritual practice and literary metaphor in classical Confucian texts. Archery passages in the Analects, Mencius, and Xunzi are discussed in the light of Zhou culture and the troubled historical circumstances of early followers of the ruist master Confucius.

Archery Metaphor and Ritual in Early Confucian Texts explores the significance of archery as ritual practice and image source in classical Confucian texts. Archery was one of the six traditional arts of China, the foremost military skill, a tool for education, and above all, an important custom of the rulers and aristocrats of the early dynasties. Rina Marie Camus analyzes passages inspired by archery in the texts of the Analects, Mencius, and Xunzi in relation to the shifting social and historical conditions of the late Zhou dynasty, the troubled times of early followers of the ruist master Confucius. Camus posits that archery imagery is recurrent and touches on fundamental themes of literature; ritual archers in the Analects, sharp shooters in Mencius, and the fashioning of exquisite bows and arrows in Xunzi represent the gentleman, pursuit of ren, and self-cultivation. Furthermore, Camus argues that not only is archery an important Confucian metaphor, it also proves the cognitive value of literary metaphors—more than linguistic ornamentation, metaphoric utterances have features and resonances that disclose their speakers’ saliencies of thought.

Rina Marie Camus teaches philosophy and experiential pedagogies at Hong Kong Polytechnic University.

Acknowledgments
Abbreviation & Illustrations
Introduction
Literary Metaphor, A Package Deal
Chapter 1: Bow-wielding Aristocrats of Zhou
The Bow in Warfare and Sports
The Bow in Zhou Ritual Tradition
Bow Narratives & Poetry
Chapter 2: Ritual Archers in the Analects
Confucius and the Bow
The Competition of Gentlemen (An 3.7)
Hitting the Target is not the Main Thing (An 3.16)
Straight as an Arrow (An 15.16)
Chapter 3: Sharp Shooters in Mencius
Mencius and Archery in Early Warring States
The Gentleman as Sharp Shooter (M 2A.7 & 5B.1)
Teaching the Way as Archery Training (M 6A.20 & 7A.41)
Moral Failure as Faulty Aiming (M 6A.9)
Chapter 4: Fine Bows and Distant Targets in Xunzi
Xunzi and Archery in Late Warring States
Transforming Nature: Fashioning Bows from Twisted Wood
Paragons of Learning: Undividedness and Not Missing a Shot
Visions of Government: The State Needs Scholars as Much as Archers
Concluding Remarks
Bibliography
About the Author

Erscheinungsdatum	10.05.2021
Zusatzinfo	15 b/w photos; 4 textboxes;
Sprache	englisch
Maße	162 x 228 mm
Gewicht	386 g
Themenwelt	Geisteswissenschaften ► Philosophie ► Östliche Philosophie
	Geisteswissenschaften ► Philosophie ► Philosophie Altertum / Antike
	Geisteswissenschaften ► Philosophie ► Sprachphilosophie
ISBN-10	1-4985-9720-3 / 1498597203
ISBN-13	978-1-4985-9720-3 / 9781498597203
Zustand	Neuware