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Ideas, Determination, Power: How Zhang Juzheng Dominated China, 1572–82
Dardess, John W.
Dardess, John W.
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Abstract
Zhang Juzheng (1525-1582) was psychologically the most complex of Ming
China’s chief grand secretaries. His rise owed something to an appealing combination
of brilliance with diffidence and humility. He was learned, and mastered the literary
arts of memorization, comprehension, and interpretation, and the articulation of these
things in a clear and creative way in writing. But learning, for Zhang, was never
enough. One’s learning, if thoroughly and conscientiously come by, must somehow
find its appropriate impact and end in the rectified governance of a realm that after
functioning in a faltering way for two centuries had developed some very serious
problems. Anything less was just vapid talk. To prepare himself, Zhang joined learning
with psychological self-strengthening to meet the political resistance that could be
expected in the future. Zhang was not outgoing, but did share feats and frustrations
with friendly colleagues in the field. Was Zhang Juzheng corrupt? Martyr complex. (Sarah Schneewind)
Description
This posthumous work was a “handwritten pencil manuscript on scrap paper, left unfinished" when John W. Dardess passed away on March 31, 2020. Bruce M. Tindall transcribed the manuscript, and was lightly edited by Sarah Schneewind and Bruce M. Tindall (1956-2021).
Date
2021-08
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© The Estate of John W. Dardess
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Keywords
Zhang Juzheng, Ming Dynasty, grand secretaries, corruption, martyr complex
Citation
Dardess, John W. Ideas, Determination, Power: How Zhang Juzheng Dominated China, 1572–82. Handwritten pencil manuscript on scrap paper, left unfinished by John W. Dardess. Transcribed by Bruce M. Tindall. Edited (lightly) by Sarah Schneewind and Bruce M. Tindall, 2021.