Customer Reviews

Confucius Analects (Hackett Classics Series)

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This translation of the Lun Yu (Analects) of Confucius is the best on the market. The combination of a sophisticated translation, commentary that is not to be found elsewhere in English, and the author's own thoughts on the texts make this my daily use translation.

Slingerland's translation of Confucius' Analects is a helpful addition to the current literature on the subject. Destined to be used for college student, Slingerland gathers a number of traditional commentaries on each translated verse as well as giving a helpful glossary of Chinese terms and names of person referred in the text. While I personally would prefer D.C. Lau's translation, Slingerland's prose is quite good and less cumbersome than Ames and Rogermont's philosophical translation. This is a helpful introduction to Confucian thought for English-language reader.

Reading the Analects of Confucius can be challenging for people - with wordplay, references to historical figures, cultural commentary, and more. This edition of the Analects not only includes a good interpretation/translation, it includes quotes and comments from other interpreters over the centuries, along with excellent cross-referencing. The result is a text that is both academic and very readable, with plenty of references.

Definitely worth having on the shelf of any person interested in Chinese philosophy or philosophy in general.

I bought this book for a college course. I've read the Analects before but I thought this was a great translation. The commentary also helps a great deal since the Analects themselves can be very vague. In some of the commentary the author goes to great lengths to tell the background story which helps give you a much better understanding of the context. Overall great book.

None of these reviews relate to the Slingerland edition of Analects, which is the best around.