On ‘Thick’ Confucian Relationality from the Perspective of Contextual Individuality

Abstract

Relationality is a multifaceted idea that displays one of the distinctive characteristics of Chinese philosophy. In Confucianism, it is primarily associated with the issue of human relations. Drawing on John Dewey’s proposition of ‘relationally constituted individuality’, Roger T. Ames identifies a ‘thick’ nature in Confucian relationality whose cosmic foundation may be novel to the West. This thick relationality corresponds with a narrative approach to human nature ( xing 性), inspires a Confucian neologism of ‘human becomings’ and challenges the conventional idea of ‘human being’ that implies a Western foundational individualism. Through a proposed theme of ‘contextual individuality’, this study aims to evaluate whether Confucian relationality could be too ‘thick’ for individuality (in a non-atomistic/non-foundational sense) and uncover the implication of thick relationality on the study of comparative philosophy in general.