Li Chenyang: “A Confucian Principle of Progressive Humanity”

Li Chenyang’s Confucian principle of “Progressive Humanity” attempts to utilize ancient philosophy for thinking about and solving modern day and future-oriented problems. He discusses the meaning of Confucianism, then the two methods of historical and philosophical reconstructions, and finally the principle of progressive humanity. Li first distinguishes between “Confucianism” and “Confucius’ism” where the latter refers to a system of thought connected to a single figure and the former refers to a historical tradition with its diverse manifestations and complex ideas. Second, Li introduces the distinction between “historical reconstructions” that try to contextualize philosophical systems as best as possible and “philosophical reconstructions” that try to reconstruct possible answers ancient philosophers would give to modern problems. Finally, Li characterizes the idea of “Progressive Humanity” through the notions of “charity” and “shared humanity” where the former encourages us to read philosophers within their own context rather than our own lest misinterpretation become inevitable and where the latter means that since both ancient and modern philosophers share the same human nature, therefore, despite historical difference, the basic questions being asked are continuous and their temporal separation can be overcome. Li’s approach to Confucianism allows us to bring ancient philosophy into the modern day in a meaningful and valuable way.