Wm. Theodore De Bary’s Confucian Tradition and Global Education, a Review

William Theodore De Bary's most recent book, Confucian Tradition and Global Education, is a collection of lectures given in honor of Tang Junyi, with two additional essays by Cheung Chan Fai and Kwan Tze-wan. The book surveys a constellation of themes concerning the place of the Confucian tradition in the contemporary world and the role of Asian classics in global liberal education. De Bary thoughtfully presents the case that not only are Confucian and neo-Confucian works relevant for a truly liberal—and thus global—education, but that repossession of the Confucian tradition by China and other countries heavily influenced by Confucian thought is crucial in the contemporary world. While De Bary is best known for his philosophical scholarship, this book is not narrowly located in Chinese or Asian philosophy. With its focus on issues of education, it addresses many different areas within the humanities, including questions about the purpose of humanities education itself.