Review Essay: Between Nature and Person: What the Neo-Confucian Wang Fuzhi Can Teach us about Ecological Humanism (original) (raw)

Many great minds, throughout the history of mankind, have wondered upon the relationship between nature and person. In the " Anthropocene " —the era where human activities have a significant and unprecedented influence on earth—the relationship between nature and person is no longer a mere philosophical topic for the curious minds to entertain, but a practical and pressing issue for many, including philosophers, to address. Philosophers have set onto the journey of seeking an alternative metaphysical view to anthropocentrism, which problematically places humans at the center of nature. Brasovan offers such an effort: He innovatively brings together the Neo-Confucian Wang Fuzhi's account with ecological humanism, aiming to contribute a view of human and nature that consist of continuous, dynamic and complex systems. Through critically engage with Brasovan's account, I discuss some of the most notable contributions of Wang Fuzhi's philosophy to our understanding of the relationship between nature and human, such as Wang's anti-anthropocentric metaphysics, his qi monism, and the spiritual side of his philosophy. I then criticize Brasovan's project on two accounts: his categorization of Wang's qi monism as materialism [with provisos] and his lack of discussion of human-centric concepts in Wang's philosophy. Lastly, I draw the reader's attention to the rich resources presented by Wang, who witnesses and partakes in the interaction amongst the Confucian, Daoist, and Buddhist traditions; I also emphasize the significance and promises brought by Brasovan's approach of engaging Neo-Confucian thinkers with modern philosophical concerns such as the demand of ecological humanism.