Bulletin Autumn‧Winter 2005

Citation Doctor o f Laws, honoris causa Prof. King Ye o Chi Ambrose W e w h o are l i v i n g t o d a y have th e g o o d f o r t u ne to stand a s t r i d e t w o c e n t u r i e s as w i t n e s s e s to m a n y e a r t h - s h a k i ng h i s t o r i c a l changes. Yet w h a t s i g n i f i c a n c e d o these experiences h o l d f or us? W i l l t h e y b e c ome just a p a r t o f o u r m e m o r y o f t h e p a s t , n o w a n d a g a i n r a i s i n g a s m i l e , o r i n d u c i n g a s i g h ? O r s h o u l d w e l o o k s q u a r e ly a t t h e s e h i s t o r i c a l events a n d c o n s i d e r t h e ir u n d e r l y i ng causes a n d i mp l i c a t i o n s f r o m v a r i o us angles? To p o n d e r the p a st a n d l o ok t o w a r d the f u t u re f r om the vantage p o i n t of the present: this is a sage's a p p r o a ch t o life. Prof. Am b r o s e Y.C. K i n g is a s o c i o l o g i s t, t h i n k e r a n d e d u c a t o r, t o u c h i n g o n issues a n d areas t h at s p an o v e r d i f f e r e nt generations a n d centuries. Prof. Amb r o s e K i n g 's academic t r a i n i n g b e g a n i n T a i w a n. I n th e 1950s he g a i n e d a Bachelor o f A r t s f r om T a i w a n U n i v e r s i t y a n d a n M A f r om Ch e n g c hi University . F o l l o w i ng this he w e n t abroad to s t u dy at the Un i v e r s i t y o f P i t t s b u r g h i n th e U n i t ed States, w h e r e he b r o a d e n e d h is i n t e l l e c t u a l h o r i z o n s . H e w a s a w a r d e d a P h . D . i n 1970. L i k e m a n y i n t e l l e c t u a ls o f the d a y , h e w a s c o n c e r n ed a b o ut th e n e w d e v e l o pme n ts i n C h i n a as it s l o u g h e d o f f t he o l d society, a n d g a v e his a t t e n t i o n t o t h e s u b s e q u e n t c o u r se t h a t Ch i n e se c u l t u re m i g h t take . H e e m p l o y ed the t h e o r e t i c al f r a m e w o r k of M a x We b e r, a w e s t e rn scholar, as a d i f f e r e nt e n t r y p o i n t to f o r m u l a t e a n e w a n a l y s i s of t h i s series o f p o l i t i c al a n d i n t e l l e c t u al issues. B e t w e en From Tradition to Modernity (1966) a n d The Modern Turn of China (2004), P r o f. K i n g d e v o t ed a l mo s t f o ur decades to the s t u d y of the course a n d p a t t e r n of changes t h a t C h i na u n d e r w e n t d u r i n g t h e p a s t t w o c e n t u r i e s a n d mo r e. F r o m the e nd of th e 19th c e n t u r y to the b e g i n n i n g o f the 21st, f o l l o w i n g the d i s i n t e g r a t i on of th e d y n a s t ic o r d e r a n d the c o l l a p s e o f t h e c l a n s y s t e m , C h i n a h a s g r a d u a l l y e n t e r e d u p o n a n e w era. B u t i n these 200 y e a r s as C h i n a ha s m o d e r n i z e d , The 62nd Congregation 2 7