Gentleman-scholar, Critic and Hero of Letters：Ideological Origins and Self-identity of Mei Kuang-Ti

• Main Authors: Tsai, Cheng-Fang, 蔡政芳
• Other Authors: Sae-Chen Joseffin
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2015
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/utua6r

碩士 === 東海大學 === 中國文學系 === 103 === K.T. Mei has long been known as a force of the opposition in the New Cultural Movement. At that time, radicalism overwhelmed the conservatism as the dominant school of thought. A critical thinker, K.T. Mei suggested establishing a new Chinese culture by aggressively introducing western culture while integrating profound values that are common to both Chinese and western cultures. His cultural conservatism did not propose to maintain tradition blindly. His conservatism was not a worthless idea. It is imperative that we now re-evaluate K.T. Mei's role in modern Chinese history of ideas by the depth of his philosophy. We must also re-examine how he viewed his role in society and what his aspirations were, at the time when the old intersected the new. To begin, this thesis attempts to trace back to the school of thought where K.T. Mei's derived his ideas. Nowadays, most scholars agree that what differentiates Critical Review School from other conservatism is its underpinning knowledge in western studies. Compared with the New Cultural School, Critical Review was informed by a deeper and more holistic understanding of the western studies. Undoubtedly, Irving Babbitt's (1865-1933) Humanism was the most major source of inspiration for K.T. Mei. The link between Mei and Babbitt can be traced back further to two famous English scholars in the 19th century, Matthew Arnold (1822-1888) and Thomas Carlyle (1975-1881). Not only did Babbitt derived Humanism from their theories, K.T. Mei was also heavily influenced by them. This thesis draws the link from Carlyle to Arnold, to Babbitt, and to Mei. This is Mei's academic foundation and the context in which he formed his ideas. These great minds acted as Mei's role models, and in large part shaped his moral character and ideals in life. This thesis next sheds light on how K.T. Mei managed to integrate the Chinese and western cultures in an era where the old ideas met the new, while maintaining the recognition of Chinese culture. The primary materials in this thesis are Mei's own works and the secondary materials are documentation regarding his life. It expounds on how Mei found role models in admirable scholars such as Babbitt, Arnold, and Carlyle. It reflects his ideal self-image and role in society, which are Gentleman-scholar, Critic, and Hero of Letters. This is how Mei managed to cope with the rough time when Chinese culture clashed against the western and put his ideals into practice.