Episode 14: Women in the Analects

In the received version of the Analects, it’s quite apparent that all of Confucius’s disciples were men. So one might wonder: is this an ethics built just for men? Today we are happy to be joined by Professor Erin Cline, Tagliabue Professor at Georgetown University, to discuss this timely issue, focusing on a controversial passage that features the only woman cited by name in the Analects, Nanzi 南子. Professor Cline argues that the conventional reading of this passage is wrong and that a more plausible understanding of it is important for addressing common criticisms of patriarchy and sexism in the Analects. We also explore various pedagogical themes and strategies for teaching the Analects to students.

Please check out Professor Erin Cline's faculty profile and list of publications here.

Many thanks to The Hong Kong Ethics Lab for sponsoring this podcast series.

Want to continue the discussion? Need links to some of the sources mentioned? Go to the support page for this episode on Warp, Weft, and Way.

We thank Lena Li (LI La 李拉 ) for her expert editing and sound engineering. We also thank the blog Warp, Weft & Way for hosting the discussion for this episode.

Co-hosts:
Richard Kim's website
Justin Tiwald's website