Scholars in Disguise: The Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucian Reappraisal of the Merchant Class in Late Ming

The phenomenon of the rise of merchants in late imperial China has been well examined in many studies, in which Confucian literati are shown to have made various adaptations to the new social reality. Wang Yangming’s (1472–1529) School of Mind-Heart in particular, incorporated this development into its philosophical worldview so that the Confucian sagehood was deemed to be within the reach of merchants. However, the opposing Cheng-Zhu School of Principle has hitherto escaped focused investigation. This paper seeks to fill the lacuna by studying the writings of a Cheng-Zhu partisan, Li Guangjin (1549–1623), whose generous reappraisal of the merchants extended to the female agents as well. His obsession with scholarly pedigree and his belief in the efficacy of the transformative power of Confucian culture indicated that he never perceived the merchants as true merchants, but as scholars in disguise. He was daring to criticize and rework the authoritative writings of Sima Qian on money-makers for his own evaluation of men and women in trade. But his patriarchal views and support of the state cult of chastity nonetheless underscored his identity as an orthodox Cheng-Zhu Confucian.