Wang Tong (philosopher)

Wang Tong (王通; 584–617), style name Zhongyan (仲淹), posthumous name Master Wenzhong (文中子) was a Chinese philosopher and politician during the Sui dynasty.

[2] In the year 603, he submitted a memorial to Emperor Wen of the Sui dynasty entitled the "12 Point Plan for Great Peace",[3] advocating for an overhaul of the political system.

[7] Many later Confucians would also take offense to Wang Tong's supposed hubris in emulating the writing style of the Analects and acting as though he were an equal to Confucius himself.

Today, there is a broad consensus among both Western and Chinese scholars that Wang Tong was a real Sui dynasty Confucian teacher, although some debate remains over how the Zhongshuo was compiled.

[10] While still poorly studied in modern times, scholarship on Wang Tong has been picking up since the revival of interest in Confucianism that followed the Chinese economic reform of the late 1970s.