Wu Yu
Wú Yú (Chinese 吴虞, literary name Yòulíng 又 陵; born December 19, 1872 in Chengdu , † 1949 in Chengdu) was a Chinese scholar who published mainly during the movement for a new culture of the 1910s and 1920s. The goal of the political life of Wu Yu was a republic as it was realized in China in 1911/12.
Wu Yu studied in Japan in 1905 and was influenced there by Western liberal and democratic ideas. He came to the conclusion that the spiritual traditions of China were out of date and not worth preserving. His most famous and influential articles appeared in the New Youth magazine (新 青年, Xin Qingnian). Eating in people and Confucianism (Chin. 吃 人 与 礼教, Pinyin Chi ren yu lijiao) and The Damage of Confucians Standing for a Class System (Chin. 儒家 主张 阶级 制度 之 害, Pinyin: Rujia zhuzhang jieji zhidu zhi hai) Wu Yu unfolds a radical polemic against Confucianism , the most uncompromising critic of which was Wu yu alongside Chen Duxiu . For example, he writes:
“Today we absolutely have to realize: We were not born for the ruler, not for the old saints, not for the moral teaching of the Confucians [ gangchang lijiao ]! The Confucians are cannibals, they deceive us. [...] People eat, that's the same as talking about Confucian virtues, talking about Confucian virtues, is the same as people eat! "
The moral teaching of Confucius favors a dictatorial system for Wu, while he himself strives for a democratic modernization of China:
“For Confucius the class system [ jieji zhidu ] is very important, namely the levels between heaven and earth, emperor and minister, father and son, husband and wife, as well as officials and citizens; nothing in 2000 years worked without the tier system. [...] If we do not remove Confucianism by means of a revolution, there can be no new thoughts, no new theories in China, how is such a republic to be established? "
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| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Wu, Yu |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Wu, Yòulíng; 吴虞 (Chinese) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Chinese scholar |
| DATE OF BIRTH | December 19, 1872 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Cheng you |
| DATE OF DEATH | 1949 |
| Place of death | Cheng you |