Confucian Democracy: A Deweyan Reconstruction (review)

Book Reviews 221 Confucian Democracy: A Deweyan Reconstruction Sor-hoon Tan Albany: State University of New York Press, 2003 258 pp. Confucian democracy? Yes. In her latest book Confucian Democracy: A Deweyan Reconstruction, Sor-hoon Tan attempts to prove that not only can Confucianism be democratic, but also democracy needs Confucianism. Tan begins her reconstruction project by clarifying the two basic concepts, Confucianism and democracy. Confucianism, Tan argues, is not inherentiy collectivistic, patriarchal, or authoritarian; it does not sanction oppressive governments; what are often blamed on Confucianism are actually the distortions of Confucianism misappropriated by those in power. According to Tan, Confucianism as a philosophical tradition, has never been homogeneous and monolithic. "It is a complex and continuously changing discourse that has transformed itself and other traditions, and it has in turn been transformed by other traditions" (p. 7). And it is this transformability instead of any unchanging essence that has made the survival of Confucianism possible. In this sense, the author makes clear in the first chapter that her utmost concern in this book is not with what Confiicianism is essentially, but with what Confucianism could mean now and in the future. Tan's efforts to reconstruct Confiicianism are praiseworthy if Confucianism is to survive the challenges of the 21st century. To reconstruct Confucianism, Tan thinks it also necessary to reconstruct democracy. She objects to the brand of democracy preached by "crusading Westerners", namely the liberal one that emphasizes the rule of law and universal rights, based on the assumptions of individual autonomy and of the government as a necessary evil. She agrees with Fareed Zakaria that "Western liberal democracy might prove to be not the final destination on the democratic road, but just one of many possible exits" (p. 10). It is of fundamental importance for preachers of democracy to recognize this point if they wish to prevent globalization from deteriorating into Huntington's "clash of civilizations." Tan's comment on Huntington is more than alarming: "His pessimistic forecast may be proven right if too many Western governments continue in their aggressive and often sanctimonious efforts to promote their values of democracy and liberalism as universal values while they maintain their military dominance and advance their economic interests at the expense of others" (p. 5). To avoid this possible "end of history", Tan suggests that the East and the West maintain an open mind while being clear about their own convictions and participate in constructing a common framework of communication and exchange. Specifically, Tan recommends an Asian or Confucian democracy that might strike a better balance between individual rights and the interests of the wider community than liberal Transactions of the Charles S. Peirce Society Winter, 2005, Vol. XLI, No. 1 222 Book Reviews democracy has hitherto managed. The middle chapters 2-5 of the book provide a comprehensive comparative analysis of Confucianism and Deweyan pragmatism centered around four themes, namely "social individuals", "harmonious communities", "ethical-political orders" and "authoritative freedom" respectively. The author's cross-cultural background and her penetrating understanding of both Confucianism and Deweyan pragmatism enables her to make exciting discoveries of similarities and differences between the two philosophical traditions. The similarities lie in four aspects: First, Dewey and Confucius share the conception of the individual as a social person. Between traditional Western liberalism that stresses individual autonomy based on a conception of the individual as a ready-made self conceptually and ontologically prior to social relations, and authoritarianism that underlies the automatic behavior of the overly encumbered self, Confucius and Dewey see a self as developed in association with others, through experience involving interaction with the social and natural environment. The self is neither completely independent of nor completely determined by the environment. The interaction between them allows mutual modification to different degrees in different situations, so that individuality and sociality could mutually enhance each other. Second, a Deweyan and Confucian ideal community is neither intolerant of differences within nor hostile to strangers without. It deemphasizes group boundaries without sacrificing intragroup bonds; it accommodates diversity without surrendering integrity. Such a nonexclusionary community seeks harmony through communicative processes, incorporates diversity, resistance, tension and focus without ultimate closure, and promotes growth with its accompanying freedom. Third...