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Can Confucianism be Universalized?

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The Confucian Political Imagination
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Abstract

This chapter considers the question of whether Confucianism can be universalized in the contemporary world. After European imperialism, the fall of communism, and loss of faith in American neo-liberalism as the end of history, the notion of universality seems to be moribund. But China explicitly puts forward a claim to universality based on its Confucian culture and in competition with Western universality. Therefore the question if Confucianism can be universalized is not of purely academic interest. The salient features of European universality are contrasted with the characteristics of Confucian universality, and the chapter suggests a way Confucianism may be universalized in the contemporary world.

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Møllgaard, E.J. (2018). Can Confucianism be Universalized?. In: The Confucian Political Imagination. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-74899-3_8

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