Comparative Study of the Concepts of Self-Transcendence, Value and Power in the Works of Emerson and Zhuang Zi

Dear Colleagues,

Due to rapid processes of urbanization and globlization, self-identity, which has once been closely related to places and cultures, is undergoing deconstrution. During this process, spiritual crises are taking place in many cultures around the world. However, this at the same time also opens up the possibility for a reconstruction of the self and the formation of new values. In this Special Issue, we will focus on Emerson and Zhuang Zi’s work to address the concepts of self-transcendence, Values and Power which are key elements of the burgeoning field of spirituality research. This will represent a new interdisciplinary approach to the study of Emerson and Zhuang Zi since we seek to integrate psychology and philosophy into religious studies.

Emerson and Zhuang Zi are both creators of new values. Their power of self-transcendence stems directly from values and their new conceptions of values are, in both cases, related to the concept of nature. However, due to their different interpretations of the concepts of the self and nature, their values differ. The new values they create have had a deep influence on social aesthetics, nature aesthetics, nature painting, architecture, and wilderness conservation.

The suggested themes covered by this Special Issue include, but are not limited to:

1. The religious and philosophical dimensions of Emerson and Zhuang Zi in their understanding of the self and power;
2. The concept of the self in Emerson and Zhuang Zi;
3. Spiritual practice in Emerson and Zhuang Zi;
4. The concept of nature in Emerson and Zhuang Zi;
5. Emerson’s influence on wilderness art;
6. Zhuang Zi’s influence on Chinese painting and Chinese garden design;
7. Comparative Studies of Emerson and Zhuang Zi;
8. Value and Power in Emerson’s work;
9. Value and Power in Zhuang Zi’s work;
10. The concept of self-transcendence in Emerson and Zhuang Zi.

• Research area A American Literature
• Research area B Daoism
• Research area C Value Studies
• Research area D Social Aesthetics and Nature Aeshetics

Reference:

1. Suan Wolf (2014). The Variety of Values: Essay on morality: Meaning and Love. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.
2. Jeanifor A. Frey and Candace Vogler (2019). Self-transcendence and Virtue: Perspectives from Philosophy, Psychology, and Theology. Routledge New York and London.
3. Krzysztof Piotr Skowronski 2009. Values and Powers: Re-reading the Philosophical Tradition of American Pragamatism. Amsterdam-New York. NY 2009.
4. John, Dewey (1939/1960) Theory of Valuation. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press.
5. McPherson (Ed), Spirituality and the Good Life. Cambridge University Press.
6. Shaoming Chen. “I lost myself”-The Classical Conception of the Self. In Philosophical Investigations; 2014; Volume 8.
7. Yuzheng Sun. The Research on the Meaning in Life; Beijing Normal University Press: Beijing, China, 2020.
8. Guoxiang Peng. Confucian Tradition: Between the Religion and Humanism; Peking University Press: Beijing, China.
9. Ulrike Wagner. ‘Everyday Aesthetics and the Practice of Historical Reenactment: Revisiting Cavell’s Emerson’, in Over and Over and Over Again: Reenactment Strategies in Contemporary Arts and Theory, ed. by Cristina Baldacci, Clio Nicastro, and Arianna Sforzini, Cultural Inquiry, 21 (Berlin: ICI Berlin Press, 2022), pp. 113–120.

Dr. Shan Gao
Dr. Benjamin Coles
Guest Editors

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• self-transcendence
• value and power
• Emerson and Zhuang Zi