Year: 2019
Type: article
Abstract: Joseph Needham offered a vision of history that united his understanding of the physical world with his interpretation of social process, in which the material, social, and ideal realms were reciprocally constituted.This essay explores Needham's ideas about matter and form to show how he developed a systematic theory of materialism in his early writings on science and social change.Shifting the ground of discourse in Needham's project from "science" to "materialism," the essay brings him into conversation with new materialists to reflect on the ongoing challenges in theorizing the relationship between social and material phenomena.Calling into question an all-encompassing materiality that sacrifices the role of determinate structures and histories in the production of the world, the essay asks: How can we formulate a framework of material/-ity/-ism that does not dispense with or occlude the already embedded politics of culture, social relations of production, and historical contingency?The living body is "composed of " myriads and myriads of ultimate particles, electrons, and protons, indeed, but they are arranged and organized in an order far exceeding that of the simple matter of a statue, or even of a complicated and beautiful crystal.And the point is that there is nowhere you can put your finger on and say "Here Form ends and Matter begins."Joseph Needham (1941) Fundamental to Joseph Needham's historical project was the conviction that science was a universal endeavor, in which Chinese civilization played a significant role.Modern science was an ecumenical enterprise rooted in scientific and technological interchanges between East and West-what he described as a "veritable titration."Needham employed this metaphor of volumetric analysis-a method of chemical analysis whereby the concen-BuYun Chen is assistant professor of Asian History at Swarthmore College.Her current research explores how the circulation of raw materials and finished goods between China, Japan, and Southeast Asia shaped local craft practices.She is the author of Empire of Style: Silk and Fashion in Tang China (Washington, 2019).
Source: Technology and Culture
Author: Buyun Chen
Language: English
Subfield: History and Philosophy of Science
Field: Arts and Humanities
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: bronze
OpenAlex ID: W2950629230