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Feng Youlan: A Short History of Chinese Philosophy (1997) 4 stars

Classic

4 stars

It's not that short. There's some very early-20th-century theories: for example, one explains the differences between the Greek and Chinese philosophical traditions being the result of geographic and economic conditions (maritime merchants vs landbound farmers). When taken with a big grain of salt these sorts of theories are fun to read, I simply take them as storytelling and not as scientific. The book is geared towards an audience that knows the Western philosophers and is discovering the Chinese.