Yiting Tang
MA student, UChicago Divinity School
On Being Attuned: A Reading of Zhuangzi II
Thursday, February 13th, 5:00 PM, Swift 207
The workshop will consist of a short presentation, followed by discussion and Q&A. We will focus on a pre-circulated paper, which can be accessed here (password: “Zhuangzi”).
Abstract
It is well-known that, in classical Chinese philosophy, qing 情 does not always and primarily mean emotions. At the same time, many studies still approach the discourse on qing 情 in the Zhuangzi under the rubric of something like the philosophy of emotion. The aim of this paper is not so much to criticize that approach to the Zhuangzi but to explore the aspects of qing 情 in the Zhuangzi that don’t neatly fit into the categories of emotions, moods, and affects. My attempt will be to illustrate the discourse on qing 情 in the Zhuangzi through the concepts of being and attunement. My main questions are: What if to be is to be attuned? What is the relationship between attunement and rhythm, frequency, intensity, and valence? And what kind of philosophy might result if the opening of Zhuangzi II is read as a phenomenological account of being as various and varying modes of attunement?
Hosted by the Philosophy of Religions Workshop at the University of Chicago.
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The Workshop on the Philosophy of Religions is committed to being a fully accessible and inclusive workshop. Please contact Workshop Coordinators Taryn Sue (tarynsue@uchicago.edu) or Yeti Kang (hkang01@uchicago.edu) in order to make any arrangements necessary to facilitate your participation in workshop events.