Confucian Traditions in Modern East Asia: Their Destinies and Prospects

In the past, China, Japan, Korea, and Vietnam together formed a “Confucian Cultural Sphere.” In addition, because of the immigration of the Chinese, Confucian culture constitutes an essential part of the cultures of Singapore and Malaysia. Although the modern fate of Confucian traditions in these countries has been somewhat different, they were faced with common problems, such as the challenge from the West, the pursuit of modernization, and the collapse of traditional systems, among others. The most significant commonality was, perhaps, the eclipse of Confucianism as a national ideology. This paper will argue that after East Asia’s entry into the modern world, the restoration of Confucian traditions to the status of national ideology, as Jiang Qing wishes, is impossible. Nevertheless, Confucian traditions can still function as one of the main resources for cultural “Bildung.” Moreover, Confucianism should not retreat into the realm of “inner sagehood (nei sheng ),” as Yu Ying-shih (Yu Yingshi ) suggests, since Confucianism is characterized by the connectedness of “inner sagehood” and “outer kingliness (wai wang ).” In the 21st century, Confucianism should develop a modern system of ethics as well as theories of cultural, political, and social criticism.