Marc and others,
the allusion to the Chinaman & Chinese thinking in Nietzsche is frequent.
But the comparison is only true for Kant on the basis of some speculation.
The most credible source for the allusion is perhaps the 'filial piety' that
Emmanual had for his family. There was a great sense of closeness between
members of the family; the Grandfather was Scottish. When Emmanual's will
was signed by his family, they signed it with an X which suggests the great
gap in intellectual capability they experienced. Konigsberg at this time was
a trading center between the east the west.
The article that discusses this topic is called "How Chinese was Kant?"
http://www.hkbu.edu.hk/~ppp/srp/arts/HCWK.html
The Philosopher 84:1 (Spring 1996), pp.3-9.
This site is at a university in Hong Kong. How fitting! Here is a footnote:
"Walter Kaufmann is one of the few commentators on Nietzsche who says
anything significant about his view of the Chinese. He calls attention to
Nietzsche's account of the influence of oriental religion on Greek culture
[Nietzsche: Philosopher, Psychologist, Antichrist (Princeton: Princeton
University Press, 1974), pp.152-4], and later adds: "In the Dawn [¤206],
Nietzsche persists in his gigantic scheme for a future mixed breed and
considers the advantages of an ingredient of Chinese blood" (p.293)."
At 11:38 AM 10/13/1999 -0500, Marc Holman wrote:
>
> It is ridiculous to believe Nietzsche actually thought Kant was a
>chinese philosopher. When he calls Kant a "chinaman" it is to make a point
>about the type of person Kant's philosophy is symptomatic of. Just look at
>all the other references to the chinese and china in Nietzsche.
>
>
>
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>
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