RETHINKING THE SELF'S RELATION TO THE WORLD IN THE MID-MING: FOUR RESPONSES TO CHENG-ZHU LEARNING

By the early-sixteenth century in China, Neo-Confucian learning found itself in the midst of a major intellectual transformation, undergoing its most lively philosophical effervescence since its formative stage. For those interested in Chinese intellectual history and philosophy, the most important aspect of this transformation was the ascendancy of Wang Yangming (1472–1529). This focus on Wang Yangming is understandable, especially given the widespread impact of Wang learning on later generations of intellectuals. In this sense, it would hardly be an exaggeration to say that Wang Yangming serves as a watershed in the intellectual current of this time.