Philosophy East and West, vol. 61, no. 4 (2011)

ARTICLES

The Cultivation of Moral Feelings and Mengzi’s Method of Extension
Emily McRae, 587

Offered here is an interpretation of the ancient Confucian philosopher Mengzi’s (372–289 B.C.E.) method of cultivating moral feelings, which he calls “extension.” It is argued that this method is both psychologically plausible and an important, but often overlooked, part of moral life. In this interpretation, extending our moral feelings is not a project in logical consistency, analogical reasoning, or emotional intuition. Rather, Mengzi’s method of extension is a project in realigning the human heart that harnesses our rational, reflective, and emotional capacities in order to extend the feelings we already have to the appropriate objects for these feelings. It is argued that there are three main features of Mengzi’s account that make it an attractive explanation of the cultivation of moral feelings. The first is the way Mengzi sees reasoning and philosophical reflection as an aid to, rather than the foundation for, moral development. The second is Mengzi’s precision regarding the relationship between the basic moral feelings we start with (the “sprouts”) and their corresponding virtues. The method of extension acts as a well-designed bridge between feelings and virtues. Third, Mengzi’s account, unlike that of the Mohist Yi Zhi, whom he criticizes, pays special attention to the complexities and limitations of human psychology. In conclusion it is shown how a Mengzian understanding of the relationship between feelings and morality can answer some traditional challenges, especially Kantian ones, regarding the proper role of emotion in moral life. Continue reading “Philosophy East and West, vol. 61, no. 4 (2011)”

Pacific Science, vol. 65, no. 4 (2011)

Pacific Science 65, no. 4, cover image

Spatial and Temporal Comparisons of Benthic Composition at Necker Island, Northwestern Hawaiian Islands
Stephanie A. Schopmeyer, Peter S. Vroom, and Jean C. Kenyon, 405-417

Necker Island, a remote island located in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands, provides a unique opportunity to investigate species-level algal and benthic invertebrate assemblages and assess temporal variation of coral reef ecosystems exposed to minimal anthropogenic impacts. Continue reading “Pacific Science, vol. 65, no. 4 (2011)”

Asian Perspectives Back Issues Now Online

University of Hawai‘i ScholarSpace logo
The full run of Asian Perspectives: The Journal of Archaeology for Asia and the Pacific is now available online. All except the latest volume of AP can now be freely accessed in the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa Library’s ScholarSpace digital repository, while the most current volumes (from vol. 39, 2000) are available online for subscribers to Project MUSE. To facilitate access to the individual contributions in the earliest volumes, we have inserted links to them from the AP Author/Title Index to vols. 1–39 (1957–2000) republished on this blog.

Continue reading “Asian Perspectives Back Issues Now Online”

Oceanic Linguistics, vol. 50, no. 1 (2011)

ARTICLES

On the Position of Bugotu and Gela in the Guadalcanal-Nggelic Subgroup of Oceanic
Andrew Pawley, 1

Guadalcanal-Nggelic (GN) is one of two branches of the Southeast Solomonic subgroup of Oceanic. Citing phonological and lexicostatistical evidence, several scholars have proposed an internal classification of GN in which Bugotu is an isolate, coordinate with a branch consisting of all remaining languages including Gela. This paper will argue that there are stronger grounds for an earlier and contrary hypothesis of mine that Bugotu and Gela form a closed, second-order subgroup of GN, here labeled Nggelic. Continue reading “Oceanic Linguistics, vol. 50, no. 1 (2011)”

UH Press Upgrades Website

On Thursday, July 7, UH Press launched a new website. We apologize in advance for the inconvenience and hope you will be pleased with the new interface.

Among the major enhancements to the new web storefront are online credit-card authorization, easier navigation by subject categories and publishing partners, and the ability to order books and journals in the same shopping cart.

One major change is that compliance with Payment Card Industry online authorization standards requires that we no longer take orders more than 30 days in advance of shipping a book. This will disappoint some customers until we are able to implement a wishlist feature that allows people to add forthcoming books to wishlists, which will later generate email reminders when the books become available for order.

Also, because of differing encryption standards between our old and new e-commerce packages, all of our current customers will have to create new logins on our new site. Authors and Educational Institutions: To get your discounts applied to your order, please notify uhpbooks@hawaii.edu after creating your new login and before filling your shopping cart.

Another significant disruption is that all links to individual book records on the old site will be broken. We will have a lot of external links to repair. The new short URL formula for linking to individual books on the new website is https://www.uhpress.hawaii.edu/p-9780824809201.aspx, where “p-” indicates a product page, followed by the ISBN without hyphens, and “.aspx” indicates the web application framework (ASP.NET).

UH Press Upgrades Website

On Thursday, July 7, UH Press launched a new website. We apologize in advance for the inconvenience and hope you will be pleased with the new interface.

Among the major enhancements to the new web storefront are online credit-card authorization, easier navigation by subject categories and publishing partners, and the ability to order books and journals in the same shopping cart.

However, all links to individual book and journal pages on the old site will be broken. We have a lot of broken links to repair. Existing links to our journals homepages will be redirected to the new journals topic pages. Examples of hyperlinks to individual journals and books follow.

Because of differing encryption standards between our old and new e-commerce packages, all of our current customers will have to create new logins on our new site.

Philosophy East and West, vol. 61, no. 2 (2011)

ARTICLES

The Différance that Makes All the Difference: A Comparison of Derrida and Śankara
Carl Olson, 247

This essay compares Śankara and Jacques Derrida on the issue of difference. This hermeneutical dialogue compares the two thinkers with respect to the following items: différance and nonduality; presence and trace; being and alterity; and truth, meaning, and reality. This essay intends to compare Śankara and Derrida on what the latter calls différance because it is a central notion in his postmodern philosophy, whereas nondualism is stressed by the former philosopher. Therefore, this comparison engages two philosophies that move in completely different directions. Continue reading “Philosophy East and West, vol. 61, no. 2 (2011)”

Pacific Science, vol. 65, no. 2 (2011)

Pacific Science 65.2 cover

Floristic Composition and Natural History Characteristics of Dry Forests in the Pacific
Thomas W. Gillespie, Gunnar Keppel, Stephanie Pau, Jonathan P. Price, Tanguy Jaffré, Jean-Yves Meyer, and Kristin O’Neill, 127-141

We compare the floristic composition of tropical dry forests at the stand level using Gentry’s transect method (0.1 ha) in some of the largest and highest-quality remaining fragments in the Pacific (Hawai’i, 15 sites; Fiji, 9; the Marianas, 3; the Marquesas, 6; New Caledonia, 7) and compare results with neotropical dry forests. Continue reading “Pacific Science, vol. 65, no. 2 (2011)”

Journal of World History, vol. 22, no. 1 (2011)

ARTICLES

The Rise and Fall of Cowrie Shells: The Asian Story
Bin Yang, 1

This article sketches the rise and fall of the use of cowrie shells in eastern Eurasia from the archaeological period to the nineteenth century. Originating in the sea, especially in the region of the Maldive islands, cowrie shells migrated to various parts of Asia as precious goods in the prehistoric era and later became a commodity and currency. By focusing on their experiences in Chinese, Indian, and Southeast Asian societies, this article illustrates the significance of these shells in a cross-regional context, analyzes the transformation of their functions over the longue durée, and discusses some local and global issues, such as why cowrie shells failed to develop into a common currency in early China.

Continue reading “Journal of World History, vol. 22, no. 1 (2011)”