Michael Slote shows a variety of possibilities of integrating Chinese with Western philosophy by the notions of yin and yang. In Chinese tradition, yin and yang are two contradictory as well as complementary forces that form every aspect of life and the cosmos. The yin/yang principle is a unique Chinese duality thinking. However, as Slote shows, this principle indeed helps to build a wider and deeper understanding between Eastern and Western philosophy in many aspects, such as ethics and physics but the readers should not mistake that yin/yang illuminates the integration between Chinese and Western thought without any difficulty. Slote takes the neo-Confucian philosopher Zhou Dunyi’s view as an example to clarify the meaning the yin/yang principle. Zhou separates yin rest from yang motion and fails to see that they both involve the same causal/metaphysical factors. Such a clear separation between yin and yang cannot only be found in Zhou but also in many other Chinese philosophers, such as Kong Yinda (574-648) of the Sui and Tang Dynasty, and Wang Fuzhi (1619-1692) of the late Ming Dynasty. Many ancient Chinese philosophers furthermore make a hierarchy of yin/yang which might be related to androcentrism and anthropocentrism.
The yin/yang duality symbolises many natural dualities. Apart from passivity, receptivity, and pliancy/plability, yin is understood as referring to female, dark, cold, soft and weak. In contrast, yang is not only understood as active purpose or impulsion, but also as male, light, warm, hard and strong. Nevertheless, if we look into the origin of the words of yin and yang, according to the earliest ancient Chinese dictionary Shuowenjiezi, yang means the area in the northern bank of waters and the southern side of mountains where the sunshine is bright. In contrast, yin means the areas located in the southern bank of waters and the northern side of mountains where is dark. The yang qualities are given higher value than the yin qualities in natural environment as well as in human society. As Kong Yingda states, although a human being has both virtues of strongness and softness, of these two virtues, strongness is more important. Strongness as yang virtue is seen as superior to the yin quality of softness. There has been a hierarchical notion of ‘superior yang and inferior yin’ implied in Chinese culture and philosophy. Wang Fuzhi advances the hierarchy by proposing the view of ‘supporting yang and supressing yin’.
The view of ‘supporting yang and supressing yin’ is manifest in the way that human beings deal with the environment. Many Chinese people prefer concrete courtyards to gardens with flourishing plants because foliage blocks out the sun (yang) and causes shade (yin). The view of ‘superior yang and inferior yin’ or ‘supporting yang and supressing yin’ in practice is an extremely important reference for the Chinese geomancy—fengshui. In my observation, such preference could be closely related to the awful aesthetics of city landscape and leads to the environmentally unfriendly mind-set. The shade is thought to be related to yin rest, darkness and death. Too much shade is seen as not good for the flow and the accumulation of qi—the vital force. Lush foliage of luxuriant tress is taken as attracting to pests. The notion of ‘supporting yang and suppressing yin’ turns into the depreciation of natural elements or brutal environmental management such as the extensive tree cutting in the city.
The view of ‘superior yang and inferior yin’ or ‘supporting yang and supressing yin’ involves the gender hierarchy. Or, frankly speaking, the yin/yang hierarchy has been used to legitimise the gender inequality of Chinese traditional culture. In Chinese language, the word of yin is used in the compound words referring to female body parts and sex organs, and yang to male body parts and organs. Therefore, it is plausible to infer the conclusion of ‘superior male and inferior female’ or ‘supporting male and supressing female’ from the premise of ‘superior yang and inferior yin’ or ‘supporting yang and supressing yin’ in Chinese. It is interesting to note that the gender implications of the words of yin and yang disappear in English. Is it possible that the yin/yang hierarchy carries anthropocentrism and androcentrism in a stronger sense than it does in Western languages?
Department of Education, National Chiayi University, Chiayi, Taiwan
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