Towards a morally defensible concept of toleration: Insights from ancient Chinese thinking

Abstract

The diversification of the world has given us the opportunity to live with different people. This kind of diversification brings not only adventure and excitements but also interaction with people and their habits that we do not agree with. In response, toleration has become the common sense of people in modern society. However, what is the meaning of the word toleration? What moral emotions underlie the practice of toleration? This article puts forward a morally defensible concept of toleration inspired by ancient Chinese thinking. I first discuss the etymology of the word toleration from Anglophone and Chinese perspectives, and then analyse three problematical emotional attitudes towards others (disgust, indifference and hunting for novelty) and critique the spirit of exclusion in the dominant Anglophone understanding of toleration. Finally, I analyse a morally defensible concept of toleration based on the ‘the dao of zhong and shu’ (忠恕之道) that also served as the ideal underpinning political unity and appreciation for cultural diversity in ancient China.