History

The history of the Department can be traced to the establishment of the Department of Philosophy and Education of New Asia College in 1949. Chung Chi College was founded two years later, and the course "Philosophy of Life" was already taught at the time. The Department of Religious Knowledge and Philosophy was established in 1963 and renamed the Department of Philosophy and Religion in 1968. Both colleges, together with United College, were amalgamated to form the Chinese University of Hong Kong in 1963. When the University was restructured in 1977, the Department of Philosophy of New Asia College and the Department of Philosophy and Religion of Chung Chi College were combined to form the present Department of Philosophy.

In its early years, the department was home to such internationally renowned faculty as Professors Tang Chun-i, Mou Zongsan, and Lao Sze-kwang, three of the leading Chinese philosophers of the 20th century. Under their leadership, the department carried on China's rich tradition of humanistic scholarship and became an internationally recognized center for research in Chinese philosophy, especially contemporary New Confucianism.

Beginning in the 1970s, a new generation of American-educated scholars, such as Professors Liu Shu-hsien and Ho Hsiu-hwang, joined the university. These scholars recognized Hong Kong's unique position in East Asia as an economically developed English colony steeped in traditional Chinese culture and learning. Seeing it their mission to promote cross-cultural understanding and exchange between China and the West, they pursued an inclusive, pluralistic approach in recruiting new faculty, and in teaching and research placed equal stress on the development of Chinese and Western philosophy, creating an open, pluralistic academic environment that the department strives to maintain today.

 

Mission

Teaching: The Department of Philosophy strives to offer a diverse, balanced curriculum incorporating Eastern and Western philosophical traditions that meets international standards while maintaining national and regional relevance. The undergraduate curriculum aims to give students a strong liberal arts education, to prepare them for advanced work in philosophy, and to train them in critical thinking and written and oral communications skills applicable to a wide variety of professions. The graduate program provides advanced training in specialized areas of philosophy, with the goal of preparing students to undertake rigorous independent research. In addition to the undergraduate and graduate programs in philosophy, the department's faculty is strongly committed to CUHK's general education program. Approximately half of the Department's teaching is devoted to general education courses, and members of the department have been deeply involved in exploring and clarifying the ideas of a general university education. These activities have helped the department to accumulate extensive experience in humanities education while taking an active part in defining the overall educational aims and the image of the Chinese University of Hong Kong.

 

Research: The department seeks to foster outstanding research in a variety of philosophical fields, such as analytic philosophy, Chinese philosophy, phenomenology, social and political philosophy, and theoretical and applied ethics. In view of its unique cultural and historical heritage and geographical location, the department emphasizes Chinese-Western comparative philosophy as a central theme for research and scholarly activity, thus contributing to the Chinese University's aim of promoting the study and modernization of Chinese culture.

Scholarly Exchange: In addition to its teaching activities, the department promotes research and learning by sponsoring a variety of scholarly ventures and activities, including research centers, conferences, academic exchanges, public lectures, and publications. The department seeks to capitalize on its unique cultural and historical heritage -- and on Hong Kong's status as a cultural and commercial nexus between East and West -- by taking a prominent international role in promoting Chinese-Western comparative philosophical research and scholarly exchange, thus maintaining its tradition as a leading center for research on Chinese and comparative thought.

 

Overview

Faculty: The department's core strength is its faculty, whose diverse cultural and educational background, international outlook, multilingual competence, and broad range of interests and expertise support a comprehensive curriculum and active research in a variety of fields. The faculty includes natives of mainland China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and North America, who hold advanced degrees from universities in the United States, Canada, Germany, France, Australia, mainland China, Taiwan, and Hong Kong. Current research areas include social and political philosophy, ethics and applied ethics, aesthetics, epistemology, metaphysics, logic, philosophy of language, philosophy of mind, philosophy of law, philosophy of history, phenomenology, hermeneutics, ancient Greek thought, German philosophy, contemporary French thought, problems of modernity and postmodernity, and comparative philosophy.

Curriculum: The department's diverse, balanced curriculum provides well-rounded training in the history of Chinese and Western philosophy and in the study of major contemporary movements and issues in Asia, Europe, and America. The comprehensiveness of the curriculum is matched by few institutions locally or internationally.

Learning and Research Environment: The department takes pride in its rich learning environment and constructive, interactive department culture, which fosters students' ability to think critically and independently. One of the Asia-Pacific region's leading teaching and research centers, the Department is a place where Chinese and Western thought, tradition and modernity receive equal emphasis.

Facilities: The department boasts excellent educational and research facilities, including Hong Kong's leading collection of philosophical works in the Main Library; a department-run Research Library; a range of computers and audio-visual equipment for student use; office space for graduate students; and extensive information technology resources, including the Chinese University Philosophy Information Databases (CUPID) and a wide range of on-line resources.

Scholarly Exchange: The department has a strong track record in fostering national and international scholarly exchange, typically sponsoring one or two academic conferences each year. It also supports long-term research centers, sponsors guest lectures and mini-courses by distinguished visiting faculty, and organizes exchange activities with universities in mainland China, Taiwan, Europe, and North America.