Perduring Protest?

The first English Language Volume on the History of Remonstrance in China

Early Chinese inscriptions show that already the kings of the Western Zhou period (1045771 BCE) called upon officials to submit remonstrances. However, it was not until the Warring States period (fifth century BCE to 221 BCE) that remonstrance was explained to mean that monarchical rule would be optimized if officials could object to the monarch's decisions. This book examines the history of remonstrance in China from conceptual, institutional, literary, and comparative perspectives, pointing out parallels to European institutions and the expression of dissent in modern China. Special attention is paid to the historical semantics of remonstrance, the strategies and intentions of remonstrants, and the perspective of the rulers who instrumentalized criticism to pursue their own goals.

Auteur
Thomas Crone is Research Coordinator of the IKGF "Fate, Freedom and Prognostication. Strategies for Coping with the Future in East Asia and Europe" in Erlangen. His research focuses on the history of ancient Chinese philosophy and religion. Paul Fahr is Research Fellow at the Faculty of East Asian Studies at Ruhr University Bochum. His research covers concepts and institutions of rule in early imperial China. Prof. Dr. Christian Schwermann lehrt Sprache und Literatur Chinas an der Universität Bochum und ist Leiter des Projekts »Institutionalisierung von Kritik in China von der Antike bis in die frühe Kaiserzeit« des Sonderforschungsbereichs 1167. Thomas Crone is Research Coordinator of the IKGF "Fate, Freedom and Prognostication. Strategies for Coping with the Future in East Asia and Europe" in Erlangen. His research focuses on the history of ancient Chinese philosophy and religion. Paul Fahr is Research Fellow at the Faculty of East Asian Studies at Ruhr University Bochum. His research covers concepts and institutions of rule in early imperial China. Prof. Dr. Christian Schwermann lehrt Sprache und Literatur Chinas an der Universität Bochum und ist Leiter des Projekts »Institutionalisierung von Kritik in China von der Antike bis in die frühe Kaiserzeit« des Sonderforschungsbereichs 1167.