THE ABUSE OF POWER AND THE UNDERMINING OF NATURE: THE ORIGINS OF THE DISCOURSE AGAINST “CLEVERNESS” IN “ZHUANGZI”
THE ABUSE OF POWER AND THE UNDERMINING OF NATURE: THE ORIGINS OF THE DISCOURSE AGAINST “CLEVERNESS” IN “ZHUANGZI”

Summary/Abstract: The present study aims to explore the points of criticism in the taoist discourse found in “Zhuangzi” with regard to the relationship between technology, as an expression of progress and a product of human intelligence, and the same “cleverness”, present in devising complex political systems and models of statecraft. The study relies upon the textual material present in both the original chapters authored by Zhuangzi himself and the subsequent ones belonging to authors within his school, as parts of the same corpus of writings. The results show that Zhuangzi and his taoist followers had a visionary knowledge regarding the implication of society’s use of technology and the role of human intelligence in shaping a future that apart from the apparent beneficial side presents also imminent dangers that can subvert the human nature.

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