Background
Liu, Jie was born in 1901 in Jiaxin County, Zhejiang Province, China.
Liu, Jie was born in 1901 in Jiaxin County, Zhejiang Province, China.
Shanghai National University and Qinghua University.
Deputy Secretary CCP Committee, Henan 1950. Director Industry Department, Central-South China Mil. and Administration Council 1950-1952. Vice-Minister of Geology 1952-1957.
Deputy Director 3rd General Office, State Council 1955-1957. Vice-Minister, Second Ministry of Machine Building 1959-1960, Minister 1960. Chairman Province Revolutionary Committee.
Henan 1978-1979; President Cycling Association since 1979.
Main publications:(1948) An Essay on History.(1958) Textual Research into Ancient History.(1962) ‘Kongzi’s ren only theory’. Academic Research 3.(1962) ‘The problem of the "unity between heaven and man" in the history of Chinese thought’. Academic Research 1.(1963) ‘Mozi's theory of universal love and material benefits’, Academic Research (Guangzhou) 1.(1982) A Manuscript on the History of Chinese Historiography.Secondary literature:Louie, Ram (1966) Inheriting Tradition: Interpretations of the Classical Philosophers in Communist China 1949-1966, Hong Kong: Oxford University Press.
As an elderly Professor in Guangzhou in the 1960s, Liu argued strenuously for a traditional alternative to Marxist method in the study of ancient Chinese philosophy. He rejected Mao Zedong’s demand for class analysis and the distinction between materialism and idealism in his discussions of the Confucian and daoist tradition. Rather, he saw the search for harmony between human activities and the laws of nature as a key to understanding ancient thought.
He rejected class analysis in his appreciation of the central Confucian virtue of ren. He saw ren as incorporating all human virtues. Even though the concept originated in feudal times, it was of compelling modern value and should not be abandoned in guiding society.
He thus joined Feng Youlan in seeing some traditional values as transcending class and historical period and in seeking to legitimate these values in modern society. He rejected Mozi’s ‘universal love' as an impossibility and preferred the cultivation and education of an elite to provide stable government for the society as a whole. He praised some of those condemned as exploiters by orthodox Marxist opinion, but, more crucially, challenged the whole framework of analysis and assessment of ancient philosophy in which this condemnation took place.
People's Government, Henan Province 1949-1954. 4th CPPCC 1964; Standing Committee, CCP, Henan 1978-1979. Central Advisory Commission since 1987.