Volume 44, Number 6 · April 10, 1997
What Confucius Said
By Jonathan D. Spence
The Analects of Confucius
translation and notes by Simon Leys
Norton, 224 pp., $23.00
The first Western-language version of Confucius' sayings—later known as the Analects—was published in Paris in 1687, in Latin, under the title Confucius Sinarum Philosophus, with a brief dedication to King Louis XIV, thanking him for supporting the publication. One of the Jesuit editors of the book, Philippe Couplet, recently returned from China, had brought a young Chinese convert named Michael Shen back to Europe with him. Couplet took Shen to visit the Sun King at Versailles in 1684, and there is no doubt that this shrewd gesture increased the royal beneficence. King Louis was most intrigued by the Chinese visitor, invited the dauphin and dauphinesse to come and see him, and requested a chopstick demonstration (the food for which was served on golden plates).
Review, 4901 words
To read the full text of this piece, please choose one of the following options:
|
If you are already a subscriber to the Review's electronic edition, please sign in: |
To subscribe to the electronic edition, please press the button below. |
To purchase access to this article for $3, please press the button below. |