Confucian Feminism: A Practical Ethic for Life

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In Confucian Feminism Li-Hsiang Lisa Rosenlee expands the theoretical horizons of feminism by using characteristic Confucian terms, methods, and concerns to interrogate the issue of gender oppression and liberation. With its theoretical roots in the Confucian textual tradition, this is the first re-imagining of Confucianism that enriches, and is enriched by, feminism. Incorporating distinctive Confucian conceptual tools such as ren (benevolent governance), xiao (filial care), you (friendship), li (ritual), and datong (great community), Rosenlee creates an ethic of care that is feminist and Confucian. At the same time she confronts the issue of gender inequity in Confucian thought. Her hybrid feminist theory not only broadens the range of feminist understandings of the roots of gender oppression, but opens up what we believe constitutes gender liberation for women transnationally and transculturally. Here is a practical ethic that uses Confucianism to navigate the contours of inequality in everyday life.

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Li-Hsiang Lisa Rosenlee directly challenges philosophers fixated on the Western Canon who have ignored and undervalued the contributions that can be made to the discipline by wisdom traditions assumed to be mired in the past. Confucian philosophy is presented in a way that reveals its contemporary relevance to a range of philosophical issues, from feminism and ethics to politics and social welfare. Of special note is the ardent argument offered for Confucian care ethics to relieve the burdens placed on women as care givers while revitalizing our eroding commitment to social cohesion amid rampant individualism. * Sandra A. Wawrytko, Professor of Philosophy, San Diego State University, USA *

Author Bio

Li-Hsiang Lisa Rosenlee is a Professor of Philosophy at the University of Hawaii West Oahu, USA. She is the author of Confucianism and Women: A Philosophical Interpretation (2006). Her entry of Gender in Confucian Philosophy is published in the Stanford Encyclopaedia of Philosophy (2023).