Trace the roots of logic in ancient China and see how Mohist and Neo-Mohist thinkers turned ideas into practical tools for reasoning, education, and governance.
This concise study introduces the core ideas of early Chinese logic, including how knowledge and inference are defined, tested, and applied. It connects theory to real-world concerns like moral education, political reform, and the judging of right and wrong through observable outcomes.
Readers will encounter key concepts such as the distinction between knowledge by transmission and knowledge by experience, the role of premises and causes, and the sixfold purpose of logical reasoning—from separating truth from falsehood to solving difficult and doubtful situations.
- Find out how inference is described as knowing through premises and how causes are understood as factors that make something come to be.
- Explore how the Neo-Mohists link knowledge, conduct, and education to see how right desires and right actions are formed.
- See how logic is grounded in similarity, with arguments built from observed relations and practical consequences.
- Learn how these ideas influenced views on government, law, and the role of education in society.
Ideal for readers of philosophy, history of logic, and Chinese thought seeking a clear, accessible overview of early logical method.