Writing and Authority in the Empire of the Text

Writing and Authority in Early China. By Mark Edward Lewis. Albany: State University of New York Press, 1999. SUNY Series in Chinese Philosophy and Culture. Pp. vii + 544. Paper. The Empire of the Text: Writing and Authority in Early Imperial China. By Christopher Leigh Connery. Lanham, Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield, 1998. Pp. xiv+209. Paper. This book review essays to offer tribute to two important books of our times. The sequential appearance of these two works marks a breakthrough in our understanding of ancient China, and it also shows us a new level of maturation in studies thereof. This review will detail their contributions to a textual approach to Chinese texts. By focusing on writing and textuality, these authors clearly announce to us that the philosophy of a literature cannot be separated from the literature of the philosophy: the texts of these teachings are teachings about texts. They suggest it behoove both parties to the relation to discover in the mirror their parallel identities in the other.