The Useless Tree

Confucius/Confucianism

  • Philosophy of the Family

          As is obvious now to regular readers, I am not an academic philosopher.  Beyond a rather pedestrian background – the usual survey of Western political thought, some Rawls, a little Singer, a bit of Derrida and the like… Continue reading

  • Black Confucians

         Confucius focuses on the family: it is in the cultivation of our closest loving relationships, especially those between parents and children, that we create and expand our Humanity.  In the Analects he writes more about the filial obligations… Continue reading

  • Zizek on China

       When Slavoj Zizek writes an op-ed in the NYT titled, "How China Got Religion," how could I not respond?    I have no trouble with most of it.  He does the usual post-modern reversal thing by pointing out how… Continue reading

  • Treating Adults as Children

        I am finishing up a chapter for my book, a chapter on childhood and how Confucianism and Taoism would respond to the contemporary legal question of whether children should be tried as adults.  And, lo and behold, yesterday… Continue reading

  • Confucian Thought of the Day

        It’s another beautiful day here in northwestern Massachusetts: sunny, warm; yesterday’s low temperature was the usual average high temperature for that date.  It’s  "unseasonably" pleasant.  But seasons change; they will change.  And, not to be too pessimistic about… Continue reading

  • What Confucius Would Say To Britney Spears

         Britney Spears has lost custody of her children.  Confucius, if asked by some cable TV guy, might say: Duke Ching asked Confucius about governing, and Confucius said: "Ruler a ruler, minister a minister, father a father, son a… Continue reading

  • The Last Thing We Forget

       I have long thought about why Confucius places so much emphasis on the cultivation of our closest loving relationships.  He tells us constantly to respect our elders; he also says that we should cherish the young, which I take… Continue reading

  • Getting Confucius Wrong on his Birthday

         Here is what I am up against, as I try to make ancient Chinese thought relevant to modern American life: caricatures of historical Confucianism (the ways in which "Confucianism" was appropriated and used by patriarchal state power) that… Continue reading

  • Happy 2558th Birthday, Confucius!

       They’re celebrating in China and Taiwan (though they say it is merely the 2557th birthday) and Hawaii (thanks Kim!).  Below the fold is an excerpt from last year’s Useless Tree Confucian birthday post… Continue reading

  • Parents and Education

         Here’s something Confucius and Mencius would agree with: Children who are not learning basic skills in the home during the most important years of brain development (0-5 years) will enter kindergarten already at an educational disadvantage. Since new… Continue reading