Many of the books below can be found at Amazon.com
Resources
Books
William Theodore de Bary, Sources of Chinese Tradition, volume 1

This is a good book if you want to see the texts themselves (translated into English). The editors have also done a good job explaining and discussing the texts and the people who wrote them, and the impact the texts had on Chinese culture and history.


Arthur Waley,
The Analects of Confucius

This is a straightforward English translation of Confucius' Analects.


Tsai Chih-chung,
Zhuangzi Speaks

This book was created by a Taiwanese cartoonist who wanted to make Zhuangzi accessible to ordinary people. So, he put Zhuangzi's stories into comic book form! I highly recommend this book.


Burton Watson,
Han Fei-tzu

Another straightforward translation. This one contains the vital chapters of the original text.


Conrad Schirokauer,
A Brief History of Chinese and Japanese Civilizations

If you want a good overview of East Asian history (including the Warring States Period discussed in this website), this is a good reference.


Arthur Waley,
Three Ways of Thought in Ancient China

A good overview of Daoism and Legalism. The third way of thought discussed is that of Mencius, which is closely related to Confucianism.


Noel Grove,
The National Geographic Society Atlas of World History

Not strictly about Chinese history, but does give it its share of space. It's chock-full of color photographs and maps, including a picture of the Qin emperor's terra cotta soldiers.


Benjamin Schwartz,
The World of Thought in Ancient China

If you really want to go into depth about Chinese philosophy, this is it. A bit scholarly in its language but very thorough. Did you know that at the same time Confucius was developing his philosophy, Socrates was doing the same thing in Greece? Schwartz talks a lot about that and other things.


...and a game!
Qin: Tomb of the Middle Kingdom released by Time Warner Electronic Publishing

Yes, it's a computer game, but it does an excellent job bringing the player into the world of Qin (Legalist) China. The game is very accurate in its rendering of the period, and even contains quotes from Li Si, Qin's prime minister, spoken in Mandarin Chinese. It includes a reference encyclopedia on the period. The most outstanding feature of Qin is the beautiful graphics, all based on actual artifacts and historical records on the tomb of Qin Shi Huangdi (yes, even the terra cotta soldiers.) I highly recommend this game for its educational content. By the way, the game is pretty fun too.
These websites were created by my classmates for our class on Classical Chinese History, History of East Asia 120 (HIEA 120).
Links
Animated Zhuangzi and Confucius
Really cute! Sayings from Zhuangzi and Confucius rendered into animation.
Kevin's Comparisons
Comparison of Confuciuanism and Daoism.
The Zhou Dynasty
The Zhou Dynasty was the golden age which Confucius considered the ideal world. This site includes an overview and artwork from the period.
Confucius
A site devoted to Confucius, his life, and the Analects.
http://members.aol.com/vix1010
Artwork from the Warring States period.
A Tribute to Master Confucius
HIEA 120 Homepage
click here to go Home
Also, several websites on Chinese philosophy can be found by using search engines. Just look up "Chinese philosophy" or the specific school of thought you're looking for.
visitors since June 12, 1999