A comprehensive analysis of the discourse between human rights theory and the Chinese Confucian intellectual tradition: John Rawls and Tu Weiming in conversation

Abstract

Liberal human rights theory has informed Western political policy for decades. An ascending China challenges Western dominance in political theory and philosophy and forces Western theorists to respond. A comprehensive analysis of Western scholarship on human rights and the Confucian tradition makes it clear that there are many structural and systemic issues within this area of study. It also makes it clear that there have been many potentially useful observations and methodologies suggested throughout the literature that have been obscured. One such approach is applied that brings the political theory of John Rawls and Tu Weiming into conversation. As a result, a more nuanced understanding of the Chinese Confucian intellectual tradition in both Western and Chinese terms can be developed, while important questions are raised about human rights theory.