REASON, DESIRE, AND MORAL MOTIVATION-A COMPARISON OF EARLY CONFUCIAN AND STOIC PSYCHOLOGY
This project is an extension of my dissertation 何以為善——孟子與斯多亞學派的道德心理學比較研究 (How does one Act Virtuously? A Comparison of Mengzian and Stoic Moral Psychology). My dissertation uses Stoic monistic psychology as a comparative framework to analyze Mengzi’s moral psychology. The dissertation attempts to give a “monistic” reading of Mengzi’s thought, focusing on human action, the emotions, moral motivation, self-cultivation, and the origins of evil.
This research project focuses on these different elements and will continue to analyze how the comparison of different Greco-Roman and early Chinese psychological models can aid us in gaining new perspectives on both traditions. I am currently planning a series of articles that will discuss the psychological underpinnings of immoral action, the philosophy of action, and the role of pleasure in the moral psychology of early Confucian thinkers.
ANCIENT COSMOLOGY AND ETHICAL ARGUMENTS
This project is focused on the comparison of ancient cosmological theories. In particular, it looks at the crossroad between cosmology and ethics, attempting to investigate how cosmological and ethical theories were intertwined in the thought of different thinkers and traditions. Where this project differs from past research is in its methodological approach. Much of the comparative research on Greco-Roman and Chinese cosmological theories takes a macroscopic approach, one which focuses on the fundamental differences between Chinese and “Western” thought. Such research is often focused on larger cultural and philosophical trends.
The current project takes a different approach by focusing on the individual arguments, examples, and analogies given by particular thinkers. It attempts to use such comparisons to better emphasize the arguments thinkers made, why they proposed specific cosmological theories, and what the ethical implications were for their different ideas. This project also attempts to present deeper comparisons of specific cosmological concepts in each tradition and uses the comparisons to reflect on mainstream scholarly conclusions. For an example of the goals of this research project, please see my first blog post on resonance.