Chinese Concepts of Privacy (Sinica Leidensia) (Sinica Leidensia)

Privacy is a basic concept in discussions on the concept of human rights. This first book on the (traditional) Chinese approach to the subject shows that concepts of privacy have been part of discourse in China from the earliest recorded times to the present, with varying contents, mechanisms, functions and values at different times and among different groups of people. Individual chapters examine inscriptions on early bronzes, medical case histories in the Ming and Qing dynasties, fictional representations of privacy experiences, discussions on public and private virtue by Liang Qichao, the role (or absence) of privacy issues in letters in early imperial China, and the function and values of privacy, secrecy and seclusion in the correspondence between Lu Xun and Xu Guangping. As the first treatment of Chinese concepts of privacy in any language, the book is interdiscipinary by nature and pays particular attention to the terminology and methodology of privacy studies. Annotation McDougall and Hansson (both professors of Chinese, U. of Edinburgh) present 10 papers drawn from workshop of the same name held at the Netherlands Institute for Advanced Studies and Leiden University in May-June of 2001. The papers look at contemporary and historical Chinese concepts of privacy. Exploring historical periods from the Ming Dynasty to the post- Mao era, the papers look at Chinese literature and letter writing as windows into how Chinese societies have constructed and experienced the concept of privacy. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com) Examines the Chinese approach to the subject of privacy, showing that concepts of privacy have been part of discourse in China from the earliest recorded times to the present, with varying contents, mechanisms, functions and values at different times and among different groups of people The contents range from inscriptions on early bronzes, personal letters in early imperial China, medical case histories in late imperial China, fictional representations of private experiences, and Liang Qichao’s reevaluations of privacy to the values given to privacy by Lu Xun.