In early August I'll be attending what promises to be a fascinating workshop at the Fondation Hardt on emotions in ancient Greek and Chinese thought, organized through the diligent and difficult efforts of Curie Virag and Douglas Cairns of Edinburgh. The title of the event is "In the Body, in the Mind, and in the World: Emotions in Ancient Greece and Early China," and a poster with participants is here. The workshop will bring together specialists in Chinese and Greek thought to explore the status and role of emotions in Greek and Chinese culture through literary, philosophical, and medical texts.
My own contribution will examine the ontological, medical, and ethical context of passages in Zhuangzi that advocate affective equanimity and in particular tie it to the concept of de 德 (power, agency, virtue). This research will be an extension of some of my previous work on Zhuangzi, including "Emotions and Agency" and "Wandering the Way."