Scan barcode
plethora0352's review against another edition
5.0
Easy to read and understand, insightful, and has a new perspective on Confucius. It primarily interacts with Confucian thought through the Analects, but has mentions of the Books and Classics as well as a handful of later Confucian commentators, not to mention other figures of Chinese literature. I would recommend this book to Americans and Europeans who want a modern view of how Confucian thought can apply to people's lives that is grounded in Chinese history and culture.
nffictionophile's review against another edition
challenging
informative
reflective
medium-paced
3.5
talking_to_trees's review against another edition
2.0
This is a difficult one: I found the teachings of Confucius insightful, but the writing style put me off. I am making the assumption that this is both because of the fact that Yu Dan is a professor in China - this just means that English is not her first language - as well as the fact that this was a "personal interpretation" of the Analects of Confucius.
Nowhere on the book does it stipulate that this book was a translation, but if it was, I could attribute the writing style to a less than great translator. However, if it wasn't, it begs the question: Why would she write in a language that is not her first language? As well as: Did the editor not foresee this problem, or was the editor happy with the level of writing, or was the editor perhaps Chinese as well? A lot goes lost when you are writing in a language that you learned intellectually.
Having said that, the contents of the book is about the teaching of Confucius. He said a lot of things that made (makes) sense, even in today's world. I missed a practical section though; It is all well and good to know what the wise man said, but the wise man taught and discussed these things all day long: How can his wisdom be applied in the daily life of a person? How can his wisdom be applied to the modern western world, where your word does not mean as much as it does in China, for instance?
After reading this book, I knew a bit about what Confucius said. That is just about all. I can't help but think that I could have learned a lot more about him and his teachings from a much more insightful book.
This was not so much time wasted as time that could have been much better used. This is not a book that I will hold on to, nor one that I feel the desire to recommend to anyone.
Nowhere on the book does it stipulate that this book was a translation, but if it was, I could attribute the writing style to a less than great translator. However, if it wasn't, it begs the question: Why would she write in a language that is not her first language? As well as: Did the editor not foresee this problem, or was the editor happy with the level of writing, or was the editor perhaps Chinese as well? A lot goes lost when you are writing in a language that you learned intellectually.
Having said that, the contents of the book is about the teaching of Confucius. He said a lot of things that made (makes) sense, even in today's world. I missed a practical section though; It is all well and good to know what the wise man said, but the wise man taught and discussed these things all day long: How can his wisdom be applied in the daily life of a person? How can his wisdom be applied to the modern western world, where your word does not mean as much as it does in China, for instance?
After reading this book, I knew a bit about what Confucius said. That is just about all. I can't help but think that I could have learned a lot more about him and his teachings from a much more insightful book.
This was not so much time wasted as time that could have been much better used. This is not a book that I will hold on to, nor one that I feel the desire to recommend to anyone.
carolinafreitas's review against another edition
2.0
Acredito que a tradução esteja a destruir grande parte deste livro.
Acho que são ditas aqui muitas coisas bonitas e que para mim fazem muito sentido, e também sei que não me lembro de grande parte e, portanto, devo aplicar muito pouco na minha vida. Olha, temos pena.
É difícil de ler por causa da tradução ranhosa.
Acho que são ditas aqui muitas coisas bonitas e que para mim fazem muito sentido, e também sei que não me lembro de grande parte e, portanto, devo aplicar muito pouco na minha vida. Olha, temos pena.
É difícil de ler por causa da tradução ranhosa.