Liberation as Affirmation SUNY series in Chinese Philosophy and Culture Roger T. Ames, editor LIBERATION AS AFFIRMATION The Religiosity of Zhuangzi and Nietzsche Ge Ling Shang State University of New York Press Published by State University of New York Press, Albany © 2006 State University of New York All rights reserved Printed in the United States of America No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatso- ever without written permission. No part of this book may be stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means including electronic, electrostatic, magnetic tape, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise without the prior permission in writing of the publisher. For information, address State University of New York Press, 194 Washington Avenue, Suite 305 Albany, NY 12210 Production by Kelli Williams Marketing by Susan M. Petrie Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Shang, Geling. Liberation as affirmation: the religiosity of Zhuangzi and Nietzsche / Ge Ling Shang. p. cm. — (SUNY series in Chinese philosophy and culture) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0-7914-6667-1 (hardcover : alk. paper) 1. Philosophy, Taoist. 2. Philosophy. 3. Philosophy, Comparative. 4. Zhuangzi. 5. Nietzsche, Friedrich Wilhelm, 1844–1900. I.Title. II. Series. BL1920.S45 2006 181(cid:98).114—dc22 2005007995 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 To My Father Shang Xü CONTENTS Acknowledgments ix Chapter 1. Introduction 1 Reinterpreting Zhuangzi and Nietzsche 2 Perspective on Comparative Philosophy 4 Method and Plan 5 Chapter 2. Zhuangzi’s Dao: A Way of Freedom 9 The Concept of Dao in Early Chinese History 11 Wuwu: A Deconstruction of Metaphysical Perspectives of Dao 15 Dao Throughs as One 23 Wuzhi: Equalizing Opinions is the Way of True Knowledge 29 Language without Words: Beyond Language and Silence 37 Wuwei or Non-doing: Against the Tradition of Morality 46 Xiao Yao You: A Spiritual Freedom Realized in this World 52 Chapter 3. Nietzsche’s Philosophy of Life Affirmation 59 Nietzsche’s Mission: Revaluation of All Values 60 Genealogy: A New Way of Philosophizing 67 Truth, Knowledge, and Morals 71 Metaphysics as a Symptom of Human Decadence 72 Truths as Lies and Will to Truth as Ascetic Ideal 76 Language and Truth 78 Does Nietzsche Renounce the Existence of Truth? 79 A Genealogical Critique of Morality 80 Overcoming Metaphysics 83 The World of Appearances and the Will to Power 86 Religiosity: Liberation as Life Affirmation 93 vii viii CONTENTS Chapter 4. An Interplay between Zhuangzi and Nietzsche 103 Goblet Words and Dionysian Dithyramb 104 Truth, Knowledge, and Interpretation 108 Revaluation and Devaluation: Beyond Good and Evil 113 Nature as Primary Unity 118 True Person and Übermensch: Living in the World 125 Ziran and Freedom: Life Affirmation 131 Further Reflections on Differences Between Zhuangzi and Nietzsche 134 Chapter 5. Converging New Worlds: Zhuangzi, Nietzsche, and Contemporary Philosophy 137 Affirmation after Deconstruction: Zhuangzi and Nietzsche Challenge Postmodern Solutions 138 The Liberation of Thought: Zhuangzi and Nietzsche in Contemporary China 146 Philosophical Religiosity 153 Notes 165 Selected References 181 Index 189 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This book would have been an impossible task for me to accomplish without the direct and indirect contributions by a great many people to its production. I wish to thank late Charles Wei-Hsun Fu, who encouraged me to come to study in the United States and worked with me on this topic at the outset. His delicate taste and acute criticism of philosophy, his passionate and exuber- ant will to love and friendship, and his conscientious study and continuous search for knowledge kept reminding me how to live and work as a philoso- pher. Many of the ideas in the book originated from our conversations and discussions during the years we spent together at Temple University. Special thanks to Joseph Magolis, Yü Ying-shih, Thomas J. Dean, Sandra Wawarytko, Lisa Portmess, and Louis J. Hammann whose critical comments and constructive advice through most parts of my graduate studies are invalu- able for its further development. I am happy to acknowledge specifically the help and support I received from Donald Munro, Peimin Ni, and Stephen Rowe. They read my final manuscript and provided very concrete advice and serious corrections for its completion. I would like to thank my friends Weiming Tu, Yanming An, Yong Huang, Zao Zhang, Tania Oldenhage, Kui-de Chen, Wansheng Huang, Guorong Yang, Xuanmeng Yü, Jianchu Chen, and Elizabeth Rossmiller for their constant support and stimulating conversations, which have always been the most precious wells of my inspiration. My special appreciation goes to Douglas Berger, because almost every step I made and every pain I went through for this work has to do with his care, patience, and wisdom. I am grateful to Harvard-Yenching Institute at Harvard University for a fellowship (in 1999–2000) which gave me tremendous support both aca- demically and financially. I would also like to acknowledge the philosophy department and The Institute of Modern Chinese Thought and Culture at East China Normal University for giving me the opportunity to teach and do research in China (2003–2004). It enabled me to exchange ideas with many Chinese scholars, which benefited my study enormously. ix