Front. Hist. China 2007, 2(1): 109–111 DOI 10.1007/s11462-007-0006-8 BOOK REVIEW

Qimeng shidai Ouzhou de Zhongguo guan: Yige lishi de xunli yu fansi (European Views of China During the Age of Enlightenment: A Historical Survey and Reflection). By Zhang Guogang and Wu Liwei. Shanghai Guji Chubanshe, 2006. ix, 454 pp.

The study of Western European views of China since the age of Marco Polo have, for over a decade now, held the attention of scholars both in China and abroad. Two major trends in scholarship have contributed to this sustained interest. One is the criticism of Eurocentrism and Orientalism that prevailed in academic histori- ography until the late 20th century; the other are the changing ways of studying traditional Chinese culture. While the former has generated such great volumes as James L. Hevia’s Cherishing Men from Afar: Qing Guest Ritual and Macartney Embassy of 1793 ( Durham, 1995), Andre Gunder Frank’s Reorient: The Global Economy in the Asian Age (Berkeley, 1998), Kenneth Pomeranz’s Great Diver- gence: Europe, China, and the Making of the Modern World Economy (Princeton, 2000), and Benjamin Elman’s On Their Own Terms: Science in China, 1500–1900 (Cambridge, MA, 2005), just to mention a few, the latter has encouraged a recon- sideration of the images and values of traditional Chinese culture from various perspectives among Chinese scholars. Qimeng shidai Ouzhou de Zhongguo guan: Yige lishi de xunli yu fansi (European views of China during the Age of Enlighten- ment: A historical survey and reflection) joins the growing list of academic works contributing to these two types of scholarship. Following his Cong Zhongxi chushi dao liyi zhizheng (From the first encounter to the Chinese rites controver- sy) (Beijing, 2003), professor Zhang Guogang, cooperating with Renmin Univer- sity professor Wu Liwei, presents this solid work that deserves close attention from scholars in related fields. With penetrating analysis of different understand- ings or misunderstanding of China, the Chinese people, and Chinese culture by European intellectuals during the Age of Enlightenment, the authors demonstrate that European religious, intellectual, and political concerns were hidden beneath the surface of cultural exchange. Divided into three sections (the influence of religion, politics, and daily life on views of China), this volume makes a systematic survey and analysis of the chang- ing opinions regarding Chinese culture among European enlightenment intellectu- als from 1500 to 1800. The changes are caused by the intellectuals’ ever-evolving opinions on Christianity, the European political system, and people’s daily life, as 110 Book Review well as by their increasing knowledge of their subjects. As Zhang emphasized in his previous volume, the Jesuits played an important role as a bridge for cultural exchange between China and the West. The strongest part of this new volume is the first section, where Zhang and Wu delve deeper into the religious influences on European views of China. The authors explain the Jesuits’ differing perceptions of classical Confucianism, the Cheng-Zhu school of neo-Confucianism, Bud dhism and Daoism, Chinese chronology, historiography, and the writing system. Their perceptions in turn influenced other Europeans, sometimes causing controversy, particularly over the nature of Confucianism, Chinese chronology, and the writing system. Having lived in China for many years, many early Jesuits, such as Mateo Ricci, Louis Le Comte, Jean Baptiste du Halde, and Nicolas Longobardi, among others, showed strong sympathy toward traditional Chinese culture, especially Confucianism, which was reflected in their enthusiastic introduction to the West of Chinese cultural issues. However, their support for certain Chinese traditions often led them into embarrassing situations resulting in controversies. For instance, their insistence that Chinese history originated from about 2,500 BCE seemed to shake the authority of the Bible, which contained a different chrono- logy for human beings (pp. 98–105). The introduction of Chinese history, culture, political system, and social customs led to widespread doubts about the European religious, political, and cultural system, which eventually contributed to the rise of the enlightenment movement. The German-born American anthropologist Franz Boas hypothesized that advances in culture depend upon the opportunities presented to a social group to learn from the experiences of their neighbors. The great encounter between the East and the West brought them to a situation where they became cultural neigh- bors, presenting both sides with opportunities to learn from each other. The facts about the Jesuits’ introduction of Western technology, in addition to Christianity, to China are well known. In this volume, Zhang and Wu demonstrate that know- ledge flowed both ways, as enlightenment intellectuals made use of knowledge from China to serve their own reforming purposes. “China” became a convenient tool in their attack on the European religious and political systems, as intellectuals either admired or detested certain aspects of Chinese culture, making it a foil to the West. Since they were so often preoccupied with their own concerns, however, some of their understandings of and expositions about Chinese culture were inevitably blurred or distorted. One example is the French enlightenment intel- lectuals’ admiration of the “wise autocracy” of the early Qing dynasty, living as they were under an absolutist monarchy. The philosophes extolled the Chinese political system in order to admonish the French rulers. Without knowing this historical background, one cannot truly understand Voltaire’s praise of the Qing government (pp. 227–229). The religious, political, and intellectual contexts provided by Zhang and Wu will undoubtedly help readers better understand these opinions.