ABSTRACT
There has been a turn to Chinese philosophy and religions by scholars worldwide in ecological ethics since 1990. This chapter will start with a discussion of first the concept tien ren he yi 天人合一 (unity of man and nature), which is an overarching theme shared by Confucianism and Daoism, then follows by the principle of yin-yang. The argument is that Confucianism is the philosophy of the ruling class for centuries and it is both anthropocentric and androcentric while Daoism is more concerned with nature. Discussion on Chinese literary texts from an ecofeminist approach is not an easy task since feminism is nonexistent in classical Chinese texts. What this chapter attempts is exploring how ecofeminism (particularly the yin power) may open up a new perspective in reading classical Chinese literary works. Texts selected for discussion range from myths, folk songs, poetry, and stories and novels.
