By Gene Ogorodov
Serious Orientalism began in the middle of the 19th Century with the efforts of Scholar-Missonaries like James Legge. Not just Sinotology, but the study of Sanskrit, Arabic Studies, Egyptology, Assyriology, Babylonology, Persian Studies, to name but a few all began within a few decades. These men and women functioned as cultural ambassadors between the East and the West, carefully documenting and analyzing the culture and tradition of the society in which they had been transplanted for study in the West. The early missionaries also functioned as buffer and translators of European culture for non-Europeans in world where Industrial Imperialism was beginning to make Europeans the dominant force in parts of the world that had never before had European influence. In opposition to the devastation caused by 19th Century Capitalism the Scholar-Missionaries were the human face of an Imperialism that hindered their chosen work. It was there efforts that established schools, hospitals, and courts. They were the voices in the wilderness calling for justice, equanimity, and cultural sharing against a sea of interests demanding spoil and pillage. James Legge's translation of the Analects of Confucius is good but dated; however, if it weren't for the life-long devotion of James Legge to the study of Chinese the great plethora of Mandarin works translated into English would hardly exist.
The PLI edition of Lun Yu or the Analects of Confucius has been formated for convenient reading and navigation on Nook. It is available from Barnes and Noble here.