The Emergence of Civilizational Consciousness in Early China

This book provides a comparative history of Chinese and European concepts of civilization. Studying how language has been used in the West and China to construct identities and negotiate relationships between a 'civilised self' and 'uncivilised others', it provides a re-examination of the origins and development of these ideas in Old Chinese.

Uffe Bergeton is Assistant Professor of Pre-Tang Chinese Language, Culture and History in the Department of Asian Studies at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, USA. Having a background in both linguistics and ancient Chinese history, he specialises in the study of pre-Qín China.

Introduction 1. The Coining of Civilizational Consciousness in Modern Western Europe 2. From 'Awe-Inspiringly Beautiful' to 'Morally Refined'- The Coining of 'Civility' in Pre-Qín China 3. Coiners and Critics of 'Civility/Civilization' (Wén) 4. Inventing the 'Barbarian': From 'Belligerent Others' to 'Civilizationally Inferior Others' 5. Ethnographic Vocabulary of Civilizational Otherness: The 'Elegant' 'Rites' of the 'Great Ones' Versus the 'Vulgar' 'Customs' of the 'Barbarians' Conclusion