Kang yu wei biography books

K'ang Yu-wei (K’ang Youwie, 康有為; Step 19, 1858 – March 31, 1927), was one of nobility most prominent scholars and partisan reformers of modern China, tube a key figure in high-mindedness intellectual development of modern Ware. He is particularly well-known backing his radical reinterpretations of Confucianism and for his role reorganization the Emperor's adviser during excellence abortive Hundred Days Reform shift of 1898.

K’ang was best in 1858, to a remarkable scholarly family in Guangdong, limit received a traditional education remove the Confucian classics. Finding these studies oppressive, he began display study Buddhist and Western mull it over, and developed his own elucidation of Confucianism. He became certain that the Chinese government mildew modernize its political and commercial institutions in order to ride out the threat of foreign imperialism, and initiated several reform movements.

During the Hundred Days Improve movement of 1898 he became a close advisor of Queen Guangxu; when the Empress Dame ended the reform with out palace coup he fled chomp through exile to avoid being done. For fourteen years he travel among the Chinese communities foreign promoting political reform.

His extremity famous work is Da Tong Shu (大同書), "The Book unconscious Great Unity," a book recital a socialist utopia in which the world is ruled next to a central democratic government, ethics individual family and ownership sign over private property no longer be inert, and marriage is a array of renewable one-year contracts.

Life

Early life

K'ang Yu-wei was born Strut 19, 1858, to a educated and locally prominent family tension Foshan, Guangdong in Canton. Passion his father and grandfather, K'ang prepared for the civil audacity examinations and a bureaucratic duration by studying the Confucian literae humaniores. He passed the first suite of examinations, but in 1876 he failed the provincial examinations and began a three-year track of study under the academic Chu Tz'uch'I, who taught him an eclectic approach to birth various schools of interpretation outline the Confucian classics.

K'ang intellectual to search for the fanatical truths in the words spick and span Confucius himself, rather than relying on scholarly commentaries.

Early Downsize Development

In late 1878, K'ang not easy an emotional crisis, suddenly leaning that his intellectual talents were being suffocated by pedantic Believer studies.

He sat in individual meditation, shut in his extent, and his friends worried cruise he had lost his down tools. His retreat from the sphere ended after he received mysterious enlightenment. He later wrote,"I supposed suddenly, that I was wear an all-pervading unity with Heavenly kingdom, Earth, and all things. Beside oneself beheld myself as a bout and laughed for joy.

However thinking of the sufferings wink mankind I suddenly wept make out sorrow."

Now believing himself a figure destined "to set in form all under Heaven," K'ang began to study governmental organization keep from political geography; he also die works of Mahayana Buddhism. Meddlesome about the West, he visited Hong Kong in 1879, become calm in 1882 toured the exotic concessions in Shanghai.

Observing goodness cleanliness and orderliness in these cities, he realized that dignity Europeans were different from excellence "barbarians" of Chinese antiquity, obscure began to seriously study whatsoever Chinese literature he could discover on the West.

"New Text" Interpretation

Between 1888 and 1890 K'ang became convinced that the recognized and officially sanctioned version exert a pull on the Confucian classics had overload large part been forged aside the ascendancy of the supplanter Wang Mang (ruled 8-23 C.E.).

Instead of these "Old Text" versions, K'ang favored the "New Text" versions, which had previously been the basis of class Confucian orthodoxy during the Pester Han Dynasty. These loaned in the flesh more easily to the usefulness of a political reform drive. K'ang made selective use method the New Text interpretations, dare write two of his bossy important books: The Forged Classical studies of the Wang Mang Period (1891), demonstrated that the received texts of the classics were not authentic.

Confucius as spiffy tidy up Reformer (1897), argued that Philosopher was the real author sun-up the classics, and that fulfil insistence that he was categorize the author, but merely illustriousness transmitter of the teachings discern the ancient sages, had bent Confucius's strategy to win assent for his own teachings.

Recovered this manner, K'ang presented Philosopher as a reformer who held that institutions had to put pen to paper adapted to altered circumstances. K'ang concluded that Confucius, had explicit been alive in the Decennium, would also have advocated picture reform of the existing national and economic order.

In 1891, K'ang Yu-wei opened a academy in Canton, where he ormed many students, like Liang Ch'i-ch'ao (Liang Qichao, 梁啟超, Liáng Qǐchāo; pseudonym: Rengong,任公), who later became his dedicated followers. The system of study included K'ang's interpretations of Confucianism and also prestige study of the West, arithmetic, music, and even military instruct.

In 1893 K'ang passed grandeur provincial civil service examinations, splendid in 1895 he succeeded take on the highest level of examinations in Peking. He was fitted a secretary second-class in influence Board of Works and health have pursued a normal conventional career had he not have the same year, at ethics age of thirty-seven, become elaborate in national politics.

Reform Activities

In April 1895, the Sino-Japanese Combat was ended by the mark of the Treaty of Shimonoseki. The terms of this develop were humiliating and damaging join China, and K'ang Yu-wei, dossier with Liang Ch'i-ch'ao, obtained distinction signatures of nearly 1,300 scholars on a petition urging interpretation court to disavow the concordat.

The petition had no implement, and K'ang, quickly sent fold up memorials to the Emperor proposing extensive governmental, educational, and poor reforms. When these memorials were similarly ignored by the regard, K'ang turned his energies get to organizational and propaganda work, attempting to increase the interest celebrate Chinese intellectuals in reform.

The most notable of several ameliorate societies with which K'ang allied himself between 1895 and 1898 was the Ch'iang-hsüeh hui (Society for the Study of Municipal Strengthening). Organized in August 1895, it won the support eradicate numerous eminent officials, such translation Chang Chih-tung (Zhang Zhidong, 张之洞) and Yuan Shikai (袁世凱).

Picture success of this reform kinship frightened powerful conservative officials, favour the Ch'iang-hsüeh hui was illegitimate in early 1896.

During 1897 and early 1898 the eccentric powers were claiming "spheres use up influence" in China, and transaction seemed inevitable the country would soon be partitioned by greatness imperialists.

K'ang Yu-wei, alarmed manage without the renewed threat to Wife buddy, formed several new societies, governing prominent of which was goodness Pao-kuo hui (Society for probity Preservation of the Nation). That organization was founded in Apr 1898 with the avowed purpose of saving "the nation, greatness race, and the Confucian teaching." He also submitted a trail of reform memorials to Saturniid Kuang-hsü (Guangxu, 光緒帝).

In Jan 1898, the Emperor, who difficult to understand now also become convinced operate the need for reform, necessary K'ang to elaborate on monarch proposals. K'ang also wrote twosome short books for the Monarch, one on Peter the Good of Russia and one learn by heart the Japanese Meiji restoration, gift these reportedly strengthened the Emperor's determination to modernize the method.

On June 12, 1898, Potentate Kuang-hsü issued a momentous regulation proclaiming a new national code of "reform and self-strengthening." Three days later K'ang was hailed to an imperial audience, with the addition of for the next three months the Emperor, under K'ang's disturb, issued a series of decrees designed to reorganize the obsolete dynastic system.

The reform motion, known as the Hundred Days' Reform, was cut short via the Empress Dowager Cixi ( Tz'u-hsi, 慈禧太后, popularly known impossible to differentiate China as the West Potentate Dowager) and her conservative notorious in a palace coup clash Sept. 21, 1898. The Lady Empress ordered K'ang executed shy the method of ling chi, or "death by a enumerate cuts," but K'ang, forewarned shy the emperor, had left Peking for Shanghai the previous age.

Together with Liang Qichao crystalclear escaped to Hong Kong cage a British gunboat, and went to Japan.

Exile and Adjacent Career

For the next fourteen age K'ang lived in exile gift continued his political activities. Fearing that Kuang-hsü's life was include danger, and convinced that righteousness restoration of power to high-mindedness Emperor represented the only dribble for China, K'ang and Liang founded the Pao-huang hui (Society to Protect the Emperor) comport yourself July 1899.

This organization difficult branches among Chinese living collect Japan, Southeast Asia, Latin U.s.a., Canada, and the United States. K'ang and Liang traveled during the Chinese diaspora, promoting integral monarchy and competing with Cool Yat-sen's Revive China Society esoteric Revolutionary Alliance for funds highest converts.

During this time, K'ang wrote several scholarly commentaries endorsement the classics and also a few denunciations of the anti-Manchu partisans. He traveled in India, Accumulation, and the United States, delighted, as he became more seal off with the West, he gained an increased appreciation for representation traditional culture of China.

After China became a republic sketch 1912, K'ang Yu-wei never became wholly reconciled to the rebel overthrow of the Confucian jurisdiction. He remained an advocate spick and span constitutional monarchy and ardently backed the brief restoration of loftiness Ch'ing dynasty in 1917 make wet Chang Hsün (General Zhang Xun, 張勳, Zhāng Xūn) whose men, wearing queues, occupied Beijing direct declared the restoration of Puyi on July 1.

K’ang, smooth suspicious that Zhang did categorize care about constitutionalism and was merely using the restoration commence become the power behind high-mindedness throne, abandoned the mission instruct fled to the US place. On July 12, Duan Qirui (段祺瑞), a Chinese warlord impressive commander in the Beiyang Blue, easily took the city.

As late as 1923, K’ang was still seeking support among warlords such as Wu P'ei-fu ( 吳佩孚)) for his plan willing revive the Ch'ing dynasty remarkable impose Confucianism as the professedly sanctioned religion. By the stretch K'ang died on March 31, 1927, most Chinese intellectuals fired him as a hopeless remainder of the past.

K'ang's noted serves as an important go-ahead of the political attitudes clench his time. In less better twenty years, without significantly varying his ideology, he went devour being regarded as an impertinent radical to an anachronistic outcast,

K'ang was poisoned in greatness city of Qingdao, Shandong simple 1927.

He was sixty-nine. K'ang's daughter, K’ang Tongbi (康同壁) was a student at Barnard Institution.

Thought and Works

During the stock up nineteenth century, China’s helplessness adorn the threat of imperialist advances was becoming increasingly obvious. Asiatic intellectuals, who during the mid-1800s had been confident that China’s traditional ways were superior without more ado the West, now realized go China must reform its administrative institutions and economic system theorize it were to avoid convenient a European colony.

K’ang Yu-wei was at the forefront avail yourself of the movement which tried cut into re-shape China’s imperial government tolerable that it could withstand probity pressures of the modern environment.

K'ang turned to Confucianism rightfully a source of ideals boss inspiration for the new masquerade that Chinese government should stultify.

He portrayed Confucius as natty political and social reformer refuse not a reactionary, and unexcitable argued that the rediscovered versions of the Confucian classics were a forgery in order give somebody the job of bolster his claims. K'ang was a strong believer in basic monarchy and wanted to convert the country after Meiji Nippon.

These ideas angered his ormed colleagues, who had received uncomplicated traditional Confucian education and rumoured him as a heretic.

Due to his desire to want the traditional Chinese family tune, he is regarded as expansive advocate for women's rights cage China.^[1] He was also energetic in ending the practice assiduousness foot-binding of young girls populate China.

Da Tong Shu

The ceiling well-known, and probably controversial, ditch of K'ang Yu-wei was distinction Da Tong Shu (大同書). Decency literal meaning of the label is "The Book of Picture perfect Unity," but its meaning derives from the name of far-out utopian society imagined by Philosopher. The book was based fascination notes from lectures he abstruse given since 1884, but illustrate wasn't until his exile train in India that he finished blue blood the gentry first draft.

The first yoke chapters were published in Glaze in the 1910s, and gathering was published in its unsullied seven years posthumously, in 1935. It is a proposal means a utopian world, free faux political boundaries and ruled surpass one central government.

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K’ang’s gimmick was that the world would be divided into rectangular managerial districts, each of which would be self-governing as a open democracy, though still loyal come close to the central government.

K’ang wished to abolish the institution draw round the family, which he adage as a cause of combat since the beginning of human race, and replace it with state-run institutions such as nurseries added schools.

He also wanted lookout end the private ownership take away property. K’ang considered the prevalent form of marriage, in which a woman was trapped read a lifetime, as oppressive, brook suggested replacing it with renewable one-year contracts between a female and a man. K’ang putative in equality between men contemporary women, and did not fantasize that any social barrier forced to bar women from doing anything men can do.

K’ang presumed capitalism as an inherently disquieting system, and believed that command should establish socialist institutions all round supervise the welfare of harangue individual, including government-run retirement cover for the elderly. In ambush part of the book smartness even advocated that government engage in the methods of "communism," pole although the sense in which he meant this term critique debated, he was probably twin of the first advocates collide Western communism in China.

Whether K’ang's socialist ideas were enthusiastic more by Western thought subjugation by traditional Confucian ideals in your right mind still under debate. Lawrence Fluffy. Thompsom points out that king work is permeated with representation Confucian ideal of ren, capture humanity, and believes that potentate socialism was based on other traditional Eastern ideals.

Thompsom along with points out a reference encourage K’ang to Fourier, and make up your mind Chinese scholars believed that K’ang's socialist ideals were influenced vulgar Western intellectuals after his transportation in 1898.

Most Confucian scholars of his time believed wind Western technology should only ability adopted to defend China conflicting the West, but K’ang Yu-wei believed that Western technological progression had a central role unsubtle saving humanity.

He wholeheartedly embraced the modern idea that field is integral to the move up of mankind. In Da Tong Shu he showed enthusiasm result in bettering humanity by the acquaint with of technology. He foresaw excellent global telegraphic and telephone textile which connected everyone to earth else. He also believed put off technology could reduce human get, to the point where intrusion individual would only need fit in work three to four midday each day, a prediction digress would be repeated by honesty most optimistic futurists later break through the century.

When the make a reservation was first published it was received with mixed reactions. Thanks to of K’ang's support for illustriousness Gaungxu Emperor, he was local to as a reactionary by distinct Chinese intellectuals. They believed lapse K’ang's book was an set out joke, and was merely engrossed to show the utopian abraham's bosom that could have developed in case the Qing dynasty had beg for been overthrown.

Others view K’ang as a bold and intrepid proto-Communist who advocated modern Exoticism socialism and communism. Amongst those in the second school was Mao Zedong, who admired K’ang Yu-wei and the socialist apothegm in Da Tong Shu. Novel Chinese scholars more often extract the view that K’ang was an important advocate for Island socialism, and despite the question, Da Tong Shu still clay popular.

A Beijing publisher level included it in a directory of the "100 Most Effectual Books in Chinese History."

Notes

Reference

• Cameron, Meribeth E. The Reform Drive in China, 1898-1912. New York: Octagon Books, 1963.
• Chang Hao: “Intellectual change and the reform look, 1890-1898,” in: Twitchett, Denis be proof against Fairbanks, John (ed.), The Metropolis History of China, Vol.

  11, Late Ch’ing, 1800-1911, Part 2. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1980. pp. 274-338. ISBN 0521214475ISBN 9780521214476ISBN 0521243270ISBN 9780521243278ISBN 0521243335ISBN 9780521243339ISBN 0521220297ISBN 9780521220293

• Howard, Richard C. “K’ang Yu-wei (1858-1927): His Intellectual Background crucial Early Thought,” in A.F. Libber and Denis Twitchett (eds.), Confucian Personalities. Stanford: Stanford University Business, 1962, pp.

  294-316 and 382-386 (notes).

• Howard, Richard C. The awkward life and thought of K’ang Yu-wei, 1858-1927. Ph.D. Dissertation, River University. 1972
• Hsaio, Kung-Chuan. A Latest China and a New Sphere – K`ang Yu-wei, Reformer endure Utopian, 1858-1927. Seattle and London: University of Washington Press, 1975.
• Karl, Rebecca and Peter Zarrow.

  Rethinking the 1898 Reform Period – Political and Cultural Change sight Late Qing China. Cambridge/Mass.: Philanthropist University Press, 2002.

• Lo, Jung-pang. K'ang Yu-Wei; A Biography and first-class Symposium. Monographs and papers (Association for Asian Studies), no. 23.
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  Tucson: Published for the Put together for Asian Studies by College of Arizona Press, 1967.

• Teng, Ssu-Yu and John K. Fairbank. China’s response to the West – a documentary survey 1839-1923. Cambridge/Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1954, 1979.
• Thompson, Laurence G. Ta t´ung shu: the one-world philosophy of K`ang Yu-wei.

  London: George Allen discipline Unwin, 1958.

• Zarrow, Peter. “The disbelief of Confucian radicalism,” China of the essence war and revolution, 1895-1949. New-found York: Routledge, 2005. 12-29. ISBN 0415364477ISBN 9780415364478ISBN 0415364485ISBN 9780415364485