Gu Hongming's Eccentric Chinese Odyssey

This book guides us through Gu Hongming's eccentric odyssey with extensive readings of rich historical, archival, and literary materials, as well as newly discovered documents. A substantial contribution to late Qing intellectual history and globalization in the early twentieth century, Du Chunmei's 杜春媚 book is the first comprehensive study of Gu Hongming 辜鴻銘 (Ku Hung-ming, 1857–1928). Most studies on the late Qing period focus on Kang Youwei 康有為 (1858–1927), Liang Qichao 梁啟超 (1873–1929), and Yan Fu 嚴復 (1854–1921). Gu Hongming is comparatively much less studied. Yet Gu Hongming's controversial personal journey and philosophical pursuits are worth studying. Du's study turns a common narrative of Eastern adaptation of Western knowledge at the turn of the century on its head. Rather than focusing on the East's reception of Western democracy, modernity, and science, Du's study highlights the West's adaptation of Oriental mysticism after World War I. Du's reading of Gu Hongming adds...