Rediscovering Li Zehou: From the perspective of philosophy of language

Abstract This article seeks to shed new light on Li Zehou's thought by examining the long‐neglected dimension of the philosophy of language in his philosophical system. In addition, an effort is made to analyze how this dimension is generated by Li's creative combination of Marxism and Chinese philosophy. Insisting on the priority of life and practice to language, Li attacks the ‘linguistic turn’ so as to lead the focus of philosophy from language back to life. Li's treatment of language consistently seeks to keep pace with the development of his thinking, incorporating an evolutionary continuum from practice to life. One of the primary approaches adopted by Li in the construction of his philosophy is to deconstruct the language‐centered ontology that resulted from the ‘linguistic turn’ in the West. Notwithstanding this, his deconstruction still performs the same task as the philosophy of language typically does, that is, addressing philosophical problems through clarifying the nature of language. What is distinctive, however, is that he goes beyond this to expose the limitations of language.