Book Series of Office of Lo Chia-Luen International Sinology Chair, vol. 1 尋找黑暗之光 (Seeking Light in the Darkness - Challenges of Modern Intellectuals)

We generally think of Chinese studies as the academic discipline of regional studies in contemporary China (the People’s Republic of China). However, the region known today as “China” has undergone repeated expansion and contraction, and is in the midst of a history in which various ethnic groups, religions, and languages have sometimes clashed and at others, merged. Looking back particularly at premodern times, this region has seen the rise and fall of many different ethnic groups who have placed the foundations of their common civilization in classics written in Chinese characters. Japan, located on the periphery of this region, once shared the ideals of the ancient world depicted in these classics as the origin of its own civilization. China thus does not simply refer to a sovereign nation today but also to a civilization that encompasses the dynamic and diverse history of transformation in this region.
 
Sinology is an academic field that studies the dynamism of this civilization (which could also be called the Sinitic world), incorporating classical studies. In Japan, it was once called Shinagaku, but after the establishment of the Republic of China in 1912, the term “Shina” was criticized as hindering understanding of the new China and even expressing contempt for it, and is no longer in use. Meanwhile, in today’s Chinese speaking world, Sinology is interpreted as “Hanxue.” Although Sinology has some overlap with Chinese regional studies, it is unique as an academic field that explores universality. This is because classical Chinese texts express scholarship and thought for a universal world.
 
This book is a record of a series of lectures given at the Lo Chia-Luen International Sinology Chair at National Chengchi University in Taiwan. As the title suggests, “Seeking Light in the Darkness: Challenges of Modern Intellectuals” is a specialized study of Sinology that, while focusing on the world of Chinese humanities, also attempts to address universal human challenges. David Der-wei Wang, who contributed the preface, reveals that the title was inspired by Hannah Arendt’s People in Dark Times. A common theme in the series of lectures was “Intellectuals in Critical Moments.” The series took place during the COVID-19 pandemic, and by the time of this book’s publication, the world had become increasingly confronted with crises, including violent international conflicts such as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and Israel’s invasion of the Gaza Strip in Palestine, as well as worsening climate change. How can the wisdom of Sinology respond to these realities? In an attempt to do so, I have discussed the concept of “the space of Wen,” or the literary space. We hope that this work will be introduced in Japan in the future.
 

(Written by ISHII Tsuyoshi, Professor, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences / 2025)