The Spirit of the Chinese People

In this essay collection first published nearly a century ago, Gu Hongming compares Chinese and European civilizations while enumerating the virtues of China's traditional Confucian philosophy. Gu famously proposed applying Confucian solutions to the many problems faced by Europe in the early twentieth century. Originally published in English and quickly translated into German, French, and Japanese, The Spirit of the Chinese People was a sensation in the West, presenting the culture and people of China and making Gu Hongming a national hero.