John Makeham Early in 2007, HUANG Yong approached me to see if I might be interested in editing a volume on Neo-Confucian philosophy as part of the new Springer book series, ''Dao Companions to Chinese Philosophy. '' Unhampered by any realistic sense of what such a task might entail, somewhat naively I accepted the invitation and began to approach potential contributors to solicit advice on how the volume might be structured. The question of whether the volume should be arranged on the basis of philosophical themes and topics or organized on the basis of the philosophical thought of individual thinkers proved to be the first challenge. Intellectually the first option seemed to be the most rewarding (and difficult); it was also the one on which there was little consensus among contributors to the project about just how a thematic volume might be structured. The eventual decision to structure the volume on the basis of the philosophical thought of individual thinkers, in addition to being organizationally more straightforward, had the benefit of enabling authors to address issues of historical context more directly, and also to explore more systematically how individual thinkers had used particular combinations of concepts to frame their philosophical views. The choice of which thinkers to include was made through a combination of inviting the participation of contributors with acknowledged expertise on particular thinkers and also allowing contributors to choose the thinkers and ideas they wanted to introduce.
From the reviews:
"This is primarily a 'philosophical' companion to a philosophical tradition but it also has a great deal to offer to intellectual historians, comparativists, and anyone interested in Chinese and East Asian thought. ... This mostly philosophical companion to Neo-Confucian philosophy is highly informative on moral philosophy and moral psychology intimately linked in Neo-Confucianism. ... this book will be widely consulted by philosophically minded scholars of all kinds and not just by specialists in China and East Asia." (Conrad Schirokauer, Journal of Chinese Studies, Vol. 54, January, 2012)
"John Makeham's Dao Companion to Neo-Confucian Philosophy is an extremely important collection of scholarly essays that will have to be in the bibliography of anyone commenting on relevant portions of the Neo-Confucian cultural development. ... Makeham's introductory essay ... is most likely the most important contribution to the volume. Makeham provides an historical visionof Neo-Confucianism ... and a helpful interpretation of the contemporary approaches." (Robert C. Neville, International Journal for Philosophy of Religion, Vol. 71, 2012)
"Editor John Makeham called upon specialists from several lands to prepare this book. ... the Dao Companion to Neo-Confucianism is an academic milestone. Its contributions to the study of Chinese Neo-Confucianism will continue to inform, intrigue, and stimulate scholarly and philosophic reflection for years to come. ... It will also be a useful guide for advanced students and interested general readers. I recommend this book highly for every scholar of Chinese philosophy in general and Neo-Confucian thought in particular." (Kirill O. Thompson, Journal of Chinese Religions, Vol. 39, 2011)
"This is primarily a 'philosophical' companion to a philosophical tradition but it also has a great deal to offer to intellectual historians, comparativists, and anyone interested in Chinese and East Asian thought. ... This mostly philosophical companion to Neo-Confucian philosophy is highly informative on moral philosophy and moral psychology intimately linked in Neo-Confucianism. ... this book will be widely consulted by philosophically minded scholars of all kinds and not just by specialists in China and East Asia." (Conrad Schirokauer, Journal of Chinese Studies, Vol. 54, January, 2012)
"John Makeham's Dao Companion to Neo-Confucian Philosophy is an extremely important collection of scholarly essays that will have to be in the bibliography of anyone commenting on relevant portions of the Neo-Confucian cultural development. ... Makeham's introductory essay ... is most likely the most important contribution to the volume. Makeham provides an historical visionof Neo-Confucianism ... and a helpful interpretation of the contemporary approaches." (Robert C. Neville, International Journal for Philosophy of Religion, Vol. 71, 2012)
"Editor John Makeham called upon specialists from several lands to prepare this book. ... the Dao Companion to Neo-Confucianism is an academic milestone. Its contributions to the study of Chinese Neo-Confucianism will continue to inform, intrigue, and stimulate scholarly and philosophic reflection for years to come. ... It will also be a useful guide for advanced students and interested general readers. I recommend this book highly for every scholar of Chinese philosophy in general and Neo-Confucian thought in particular." (Kirill O. Thompson, Journal of Chinese Religions, Vol. 39, 2011)