Book Review on T.R. Reid’s book, Confucius Lives Next Door: What Living In The East Teaches Us About Living In the West.
The book review should consider the following:
Reid and his family’s experience of Confucianism/the Confucian ethos during their residency in Japan in the 1990’s—An experience which he describes as East Asia’s Social Miracle.
How Confucianism/the Confucian ethos is expressed in contemporary Japanese
culture—Including, when relevant/pertinent, consideration and assessment of central Confucian tenets operative in and experienced by the Reid’s during their residency in contemporary Japan, e.g., evidence of the 5 Confucian Virtues (jen, yi, li, chih and hsin); the 5 Confucian Key Relationships and corresponding 10 Appropriate Attitudes; the Confucian Doctrine of the Mean; Rectification; etc.
What lessons we can take from the Confucian/Japanese experience that might
contribute to a better social experience in our culture and to the improvement of ourselves as individuals.
Additionally:
Allow the review to be an occasion by which you reflect upon and consider aspects, anecdotes and aspects of the book and the experience of the Reid’s which particularly struck you in some way—positively and/or negatively—and critically engage and assess why this was the case. This may lead some to gravitate on issues relevant to education or crime or social analysis or economics or cultural rites of passage or interpersonal relationships or…In short,
there is freedom for you to pursue points of particular interest to you and/or relevant to your major…