Mental Models of the London Missionary Society’s Scientific Discourse in Southeast Asia (1815–1842)—A Socio-Cognitive Discourse Analysis Perspective

Abstract

In the early nineteenth century, the London Missionary Society (LMS) established missionary outposts and printing presses in Southeast Asia, publishing a number of scientific periodicals and books, which subsequently informed the preaching policy on the Chinese mainland. The motivation and discursive strategies of the LMS’s dissemination of scientific knowledge in Southeast Asia are worthy of in-depth investigation. This study employs the socio-cognitive discourse analysis approach to investigate the mental model and discursive strategies of LMS’s two representative scientific publications in Southeast Asia, namely the Chinese Monthly Magazine and Memoir of Things Seen and Heard by Travelling West around the World, thus providing insights into the rationale behind the scientific discourse of Protestant missionaries in nineteenth-century China. It is found that the scientific discourse of the LMS in Southeast Asia was to modify the comprehension of world formation held by local Chinese migrants, thereby influencing their perception of European scientific strength and Christian belief. This study is an interdisciplinary investigation of Protestant history in Southeast Asia, and the methodology of critical discourse analysis offers a new way of explaining history, which complements the conventional historical analysis.

1. Introduction

In the late eighteenth century, the evangelical revival movement exerted a significant social influence, contributing to the ongoing expansion of enthusiasm for overseas preaching in Britain and a notable surge in public support for missionary organizations (Barnhart 1998, pp. 21–24). The London Missionary Society (LMS), one of the four principal missionary societies in Britain, was formally established in late September of 1795. Twelve years later, Robert Morrison (1782–1834) was sent to China by the LMS, becoming the first Protestant missionary to arrive in the nineteenth century. Following a six-year period in Guangzhou, he was joined by the second LMS missionary to China, William Milne (1785–1822). However, the conditions under which they preached were rather harsh (Kitzan 1965, pp. 78–82), and the missionaries were neither permitted to enter the Chinese mainland nor to learn Chinese. Morrison and Milne then withdrew to the cities of Southeast Asia, where they sought to continue their missionary work among the local Chinese migrants, exploring potential opportunities and awaiting further advancement.

In 1815, the Ultra-Ganges Mission was established as LMS outposts in Southeast Asia, and the Malacca printing press was founded with the objective of translating and publishing dictionaries, religious books, and pamphlets (for relevant studies, refer to Haines 1962; Seitz 2007; Lee 2021; Lin 2022; Kataoka and Lee 2024). In addition to the translation and printing of the Bible into Chinese, the LMS missionaries also published a number of Chinese scientific textbooks and manuals. The publication of scientific texts was subsequently assumed by the Protestant successors who were permitted to take up residence and to preach in Chinese port cities following the Treaty of Nanking in 1842. This suggests that one principal strategy deployed by Protestant missionaries in China during the nineteenth century, namely disseminating religious teachings through scientific publication, can be traced back to the compilation and publication of scientific books by the LMS missionaries in Southeast Asia (Bohr 2001, p. 173; Gow 2022, p. 93).

This prompts the question of why the early LMS missionaries in Southeast Asia disseminated scientific knowledge, given that they were originally instructed to spread the words of God. What were the defining characteristics of these scientific discourses? What was the underlying cognitive model of this knowledge? What discourse strategies were employed? Some researchers have conducted a historical analysis of the LMS’s scientific publications. To illustrate, Su (1996) provides a comprehensive account of the history of the LMS’s printing presses in Southeast Asia from 1816 to 1846; Yu (2006) and Su (2021) discuss the publication of scientific textbooks of the Anglo-Chinese College [yinghua shu yuan 英華書院]; Hu (2006), Liu (2015), Oh (2016) and Liu (2018) analyze the content and knowledge of specific journals published by the LMS. Nevertheless, the ways in which knowledge is employed and interpreted in the scientific discourses of LMS in Southeast Asia has not yet received concerted attention or an in-depth analysis.

Based on the mental model theory held by socio-cognitive discourse studies, this study aims to identify the mental model that shaped the scientific discourses of the LMS in Southeast Asia from 1815 to 1842, as 1815 was a milestone for the LMS publishing cause in this region and 1842 marked the beginning of a new period of Protestant preaching in China. Using a discourse analysis approach, this study aims to provide insights into the motives and rationales behind the scientific publishing activities of Protestant missionaries in China in the early nineteenth century.

2. Methodology: A Socio-Cognitive Discourse Analysis

Critical discourse analysis was developed in the 1970s, building upon the foundations of critical linguistics proposed by Roger Fowler and others (Fowler et al. 1979). Over the past half century, the critical discourse analysts have maintained a clear “critical” stance, which is to uncover the hidden opaque power relations, ideologies, manipulation, and racism that underlie linguistic discourses. CDA studies not only what languages is, but also why it presents in such a way; it is interested not only in the meaning of discourse, but also how the discourse is used and how it produces such meaning and effect, and how it reflects and serves those who are in power (Catalano and Waugh 2020, p. xxii). CDA can be broadly classified into several major categories, with Fairclough, van Dijk, Wodak, and van Leeuwen as the representative scholars for each approach. These basically include the dialectical–relational approach (DRA), the socio-cognitive approach (SCA), the discourse–historical approach (DHA), and the multimodal approach (MCDA).

Among these approaches, the socio-cognitive approach or socio-cognitive discourse studies (SCDS), initially developed by Teun van Dijk, emphasizes the cognitive link between discourse and society in the critical analysis of discourse. The SCA considers discourse to be an action, a form of social interaction, a mental representation, a cultural product, and a social practice. It investigates the cognitive medium between discourse and society (van Dijk 2016, p. 64) and how social cognitions, such as beliefs, ideologies, values and attitudes, are realized by using discourse (Wodak 2011, p. 26). The SCA suggests that discourse, language, and society are interconnected through the cognitive processes of the human brain (Wodak 2006, pp. 180–82); thus, to elucidate the mechanisms of power operation or the underlying intentions, it is essential to ascertain how power groups or discourse producers influence the “public mind” through public discourse, which encompasses the management and expression of knowledge (beliefs, values, attitudes, etc.). Moreover, SCA elucidates how the cognitive processes of discourse production and comprehension are linked with the cognition systems of individuals and specific social groups, particularly through shared knowledge, attitudes, and ideologies that underpin these processes (van Dijk 2016, p. 66).

SCA puts forth the concept of the “mental model”, which represents the knowledge that individuals possess about the world within their brains, including their everyday perceptions, beliefs, and memories. Mental models are subjective constructs or definitions of communicative situations (van Dijk 2006a, p. 169). Given their subjective nature, mental models may be biased representations of reality, imbued with evaluations and emotions pertaining to specific events. Individuals may possess disparate mental models of an identical event, which are further articulated through discourse. The mental model thus serves as a bridge between language and social cognition. It includes three distinct models: the experience model, the context model, and the event model. The experience model pertains to the individual’s personal history and accumulated knowledge for everyday experiences, while the context model refers to the immediate communicative context. The event model, on the other hand, represents the central topic of discourse (Abdel-Raheem 2020, p. 304).

The context model emphasizes the importance of contextual factors, as discourse production and comprehension are context-dependent. Context, as a specific mental model, includes setting (time, space), participants with different social roles, actions, and cognitions (goals, knowledge, beliefs, opinions) (van Dijk 2005, p. 74). Thus, the context model aims to explain (a) the social situation in which the speaker is attempting to communicate, (b) the group or type of people with whom the speaker is communicating, (c) the kind of knowledge that the speaker is employing, and (d) the goals or intentions that the speaker is pursuing. According to the SCA, knowledge is defined as “certified social beliefs shared and presupposed by the members of a given knowledge community”; therefore, it will be advantageous for groups or institutions that have preferential access to discourse production to influence the knowledge formation of recipients (van Dijk 2005, p. 88; 2006b). By analyzing the context model (setting, participants, knowledge, etc.), the SCA reveals how the language user, through the management of knowledge, integrates personal cognitions of the audience or readers with the ideological (biased) beliefs, norms, and values shared by a certain community, thus achieving the manipulation of the mind.

Discursive strategies are intentional tactics used in discourses to achieve specific social, political, psychological, or linguistic goals (Reisigl and Wodak 2016, p. 33). van Dijk (2018, pp. 32–33) suggested the analysis of different discourse structures, such as “opinion and emotion words”, “deictic or indexical expressions”, “evidential”, “metaphors”, “ideological polarization”, and so on. For instance, opinion and emotion words reflect the opinion or emotion of the mental model; metaphors are often associated with knowledge that is supposed to be known by the recipients, thus activating corresponding feelings or experiences; the ideological polarization involves the construction of “positive us” and “negative them”, representing the different underlying attitudes or positions for the in-group and the out-group. By analyzing the discursive strategies, it is expected to reveal how the speaker realizes positive self-representation and negative other representation and creates the division between “good” and “bad” and “superior and inferior”(van Dijk 2006c, p. 80). The following sections attempt to explore the mental model and associated strategies employed in the scientific discourse of LMS in Southeast Asia.

3. LMS’s Scientific Publications in Southeast Asia

Given the inability of missionaries to carry out missionary work on the Chinese mainland, it was a compromise to established missionary outposts and printing presses in Southeast Asia, which could provide plans about how to operate better in China in the future (Milne 1820, p. 112; Daily 2013, p. 157). Translating and printing of particular texts were the highest concerns of the LMS’s preaching agenda set by the LMS religious leader David Bogue (Daily 2013, p. 119). The intended audience was Chinese migrants in Southeast Asia. In the nineteenth century, the Qing government was corrupt, and the population was displaced and impoverished by war; meanwhile, the economies of Southeast Asian countries were undergoing rapid development, and the European colonizers in the region were in urgent need of labor (Suryadinata 2007, pp. 1–2). Consequently, people from the southeastern coast of China, including Fujian, Guangdong, and Hainan, migrated to Southeast Asia in search of work, and the wave of migration reached its peak. These migrants traveled regularly and served as cultural brokers between Southeast Asia and China (Lockard 2013, p. 765), probably bringing back LMS publications to share with their relatives in China.

On 15 August 1815, Milne launched the Chinese Monthly Magazine [chashisu meiyue tongji zhuan 察世俗每月统記傳], which was recognized as the first modern Chinese periodical in the world, published in Malacca. This journal comprised religious, moral, and scientific articles, with a circulation of five hundred copies per issue during the first three years. By 1819, the number of copies in circulation had risen to one thousand. Another journal published by Milne in Southeast Asia was a quarterly publication, the Indo-Chinese Gleaner [yinzhi souwen 印支搜聞], which was mainly concerned with news from China, India, and neighboring countries, as well as religious, historical, and philosophical articles, with minimal scientific discourse (Chen 2003, p. 36).

The Chinese Monthly Magazine can be seen as the starting point of Protestant’s scientific publication during the nineteenth century. These publications were correlated in terms of content, columns, layout, and illustrations, and some were even printed on the same printing machines (O’Sullivan 1984, p. 66). Milne initially published The Chinese Monthly Magazine under the name Bo-Ai-Zhe [博愛者], meaning “Humanitarian”. Eight years later, Walter Medhurst (1796–1857) launched the Monthly Magazine [te xuan cuo yao 特選撮要] under the name Shang-De-Zhe [尚德者], meaning “Moralist”. In 1833, the Prussian Protestant missionary Karl Gützlaff published the Eastern Western Monthly Magazine [dongxi yang kao meiyue tongji zhuan 東西洋考每月統記傳], which was very similar to the Chinese Monthly Magazine in terms of names, content and columns. Other noteworthy periodicals published in the second half of the nineteenth century, such as the Chinese Serial [xia er guan zhen 遐邇貫珍] by Medhurst in Hong Kong and the Shanghai Serial [liu he cong tan 六合叢談] by Alexander Wylie (1815–1887) in Shanghai, similarly arranged columns for scientific topics, thereby carrying on the tradition firstly established by the Chinese Monthly Magazine.

In addition to these journals, the LMS also published books, most of which were sermons. Only one book, published in 1819 and called Memoir of Things Seen and Heard by Travelling West around the World [xiyou diqiu wenjian luezhuan 西遊地球聞見略傳], introduced geographical and astronomical knowledge. Alexander Wylie, who was sent to China by the LMS in the 1840s, attributed this book to Robert Morrison (Wylie 1867, p. 5). Additionally, the LMS missionaries compiled textbooks for Chinese students in local mission schools, which also contained few scientific knowledge. Two representative textbooks were Child’s Primer [xiaozi chudu yishi zhi chuke 小子初讀易識之初課] and Geographical Catechism [dili biantong luezhuan 地理便童略傳], both edited by Walter Medhurst, who was first sent by the LMS as a printing assistant but later came to Batavia and set up a mission school there. In these textbooks, he integrated moral values and Protestant beliefs with basic geographical knowledge, and tried to explain common phenomena in life, such as the formation of rain and the four seasons.

Based on the above discussion, this paper selects the Chinese Monthly Magazine (hereafter CMM) from 1815 to 1821, and Memoir of Things Seen and Heard by Travelling West around the World (hereafter Travelling West) published in 1819 as the two samples of the LMS’s scientific discourse in Southeast Asia. The study employs an SCA perspective to analyze the scientific discourses and to ascertain the underlying mental model and discourse strategies, thus revealing the motives of the LMS in disseminating science in Southeast Asia. It further provides clues for the scientific publications of the Protestant community in China in the nineteenth century.

4. Overview of the Scientific Knowledge in the CMM and Travelling West

4.1. Astronomical Knowledge in the CMM

The CMM was a monthly journal comprising seven pages (fourteen sides) per issue. The journal was distributed free of charge to the Chinese community in Malacca. A total of 7 volumes were published from 1815 to 1821, comprising 247 articles (approximately 600 pages), of which 13.4% were related to science, while the remainder were religious or moral teachings (Liu 2015, p. 30). The scientific knowledge presented in the CMM can be broadly classified into two main categories, namely astronomy and geography, with the majority pertaining to astronomy.

Table 1. Articles containing astronomical knowledge in the CMM.

Volume	Date	Article Title	Translation of Title	Astronomical Knowledge
Vol. 1	August, 1815	月食	Eclipse of the Moon	Prediction of a lunar eclipse
Vol. 2	September, 1816	天文地理論	On the Astronomy and Geography	The formation of the Earth
		論日居中	On the Centrality of the Sun	The Sun’s shape, size, and distance from the Earth
		論行星	On the Planets	The orbits and movements of the planets
		論侍星	On the Satellites	Definition of the satellites
		論地為行星	The Earth as A Planet	The Earth is a sphere and rotates day and night
	October, 1816	論地周日每年轉運一輪	On the Earth’s Annual Revolution around the Sun	Laws of the Earth’s orbital motion; relative motion of human and the Earth; change of the seasons; Earth’s gravity
Vol. 3	April, 1817	論月	On the Moon	Principles of lunar luminescence; the Moon’s size and distance from Earth
	May, 1817	論彗星	On the Comets	Basic properties of comets
	June, 1817	論靜星	On the Fixed Star	Basic properties of fixed stars
Vol. 5	January, 1819	論日食	On Solar Eclipses	Description and causes of solar eclipses
	February, 1819	論月食	On Lunar Eclipses	Description and causes of lunar eclipses
	November, 1819	天球說	On Celestial Sphere	Introduction to the constellations, including the twelve constellations of the ecliptic

provides a comprehensive overview of all relevant articles and their astronomical content.

As indicated in Table 1, four of the seven volumes involved astronomical knowledge. The initial two volumes included articles on astronomical phenomena observed on Earth. In contrast, the third and fifth volumes presented information on celestial bodies, including planets and constellations beyond the Earth, such as the Moon, comets, and fixed stars.

4.2. Geographic Knowledge in Travelling West

Travelling West recounts the experiences of a Chinese gentleman who undertook circumnavigation by heading westwards. The book was devoid of any identifying information, such as the real name of the author, the date, and the place of publication. The only inscription on the book cover was “華英兼述” (Huaying Jian Shu, meaning “retold by Hua Ying”). The preface was concluded with the designation “塵遊居士” (Chen You Ju Shi, meaning “a traveler around the world”). According to Wylie (1867) and Shen (2004), the story was recorded and adapted by Robert Morrison (under the pseudonym “Hua Ying”) based on the real experience of Chen-You-Ju-Shi. The journey of Chen-You-Ju-Shi commenced in western Sichuan and continued through the Chinese Xizang region and into India. He then arrived in France, where he resided for three years. After that, he kept heading west, reaching the continent of North America. Ultimately, he returned to Guangzhou via Japan, thus finishing this circumnavigational journey. Along the way, he learnt about the dietary habits, cultural traditions, and political and legal systems of various countries. Therefore, this book involves geographical knowledge of the countries and regions along the route, including their geographical locations, cultural values and customs, etc. While recounting his experiences, the narrator often drew parallels between traditional Chinese values and Western scientific concepts. In the concluding paragraph, the narrator stated that he kept heading west without turning back, ultimately arriving home, thereby substantiating the reality that the Earth is a globe.

5. Socio-Cognitive Analysis of the Scientific Discourse by the LMS in Southeast Asia

5.1. Mental Model of the Astronomical Discourse in the CMM

The intertwining of religion and science is pervasive in the thirteen astronomical articles summarized in Table 1.

Table 2. Astronomical phenomena and mental models (from CMM Vol. 2 and Vol. 3).

Source	Original Text	English Translation	Mental Model
論日居中 On the Centrality of the Sun (Vol. 2)	真神當始造天地萬物，亦造日，而置之於天空，在萬星之中間，致可周發散其光熱也。	When God created the heaven and the earth, He also created the sun in the sky; the sun is at the center of all the stars; other stars move around the sun, and the sun gives them light and heat.	God created the sun, and it gives light and heat.
論地周日每年轉運一輪 On the Earth’s Annual Revolution Around the Sun (Vol. 2)	若神一少頃取去其全能之手，不承當宇宙，則日必不復發光，天必不復下雨，川必不復流下，地必不復萌菜……萬物必毀亂也。住天地間之萬人，又敬崇拜造天地、海與水泉之一真活神也。	If God withdraws His omnipotent hand even for a moment, the sun will never shine again, the sky will never rain again, the rivers will never flow again, and the earth will never sprout again… everything will be destroyed. All people on earth must worship the God who created the earth, the sky, the sea and the river.	Mankind must worship God because He is so omnipotent as the Creator of everything.
	地每年之運行者，真神預先所命，以使有四時，春夏秋冬是也。	The annual movement of the earth is pre-determined by God, hence the four seasons of spring, summer, autumn and winter.	God has designed the cycle of the four seasons.
	神至上者，原造萬物時，即就加賜之以此性，又神之全能常存之於萬物之內也。	When God creates the earth, He gives everything gravity, so God’s omnipotence exists in all things.	Everything on the Earth has gravity, which was given by God.
論月 On the Moon (Vol. 3)	月之耀無熱，此亦顯神之大智大恩於人，蓋月耀若熱，則人晝間已受日之熱，夜間又受月之熱，必難得生於世上。日退去而暗布地時，月就出印些光，使人有何緊事略看辨之，此皆真神之智恩所定命如此。	Moonlight is a demonstration of God’s wisdom and love for mankind. If the moon’s light gives heat at night, it will be difficult for people on earth to survive because they are already suffering from the sun’s heat during the day. When the sun goes down, the moon will shine, giving people a chance to do their work. This shows God’s generosity and love.	The cold moonlight is a demonstration of God’s generosity to mankind.

selects five articles from the CMM and analyzes how the author elucidates astronomical phenomena while emphasizing God’s omniscience and omnipotence. The five examples presented in Table 2 encompass a range of topics, including the formation of the universe, the laws on the Earth, the cycling of the four seasons, the Earth’s gravity, and the Moon’s luminescence. The underlying mental model of the astronomical knowledge can be summarized as follows: the omnipotent and omniscient God created the universe and set the laws of the Earth (such as the cycle of seasons and gravity on Earth) for the benefit of human beings.

This mental model represents the prevailing concept held by adherents of natural theology in the eighteenth century. Since the late Middle Ages, Western natural theology has been characterized by a complex interplay between science and religion. In Britain, the field of natural theology underwent a series of notable developments, beginning with the ideas of Francis Bacon, who proposed that “God designs the organism or creature” (Peterfreund 2012, p. 17). This was followed by John Ray (1691), who held that “the wisdom and power of God could be understood by studying His creation—the natural world”. William Paley (1802) subsequently introduced the “watchmaker analogy”, and the publication of the Bridgewater Treatises (1833–1836) ultimately reinforced the perspective that God manifests his power, wisdom, and goodness through the creation of the universe. In the early nineteenth century, British natural theology was characterized by the dominant perspective that “the whole world is God’s Design”. This theory attributed the formation and precise structure of all earthly phenomena to the wisdom and benevolence of God. The influence of natural theology was, thus, discernible in the scientific discourse of the CMM. Thus, the mental model of the astronomical discourses in the CMM reflects the dominant worldview held by the LMS missionaries in Southeast Asia, who were educated and influenced by natural theology during the period in question.

5.2. Discursive Strategy of the Astronomical Discourse in the CMM

This section presents a critical analysis of five astronomical articles from Volume 2 of the CMM, with a particular focus on the discourse strategies employed by the editor Milne to represent the mental model outlined above. The five articles are as follows: “On the Astronomy and Geography”, “On the Centrality of the Sun”, “On the Planets”, “On the Satellites”, and “The Earth as A Planet”. van Dijk (2006c, pp. 62–84) presents a comprehensive overview of discursive strategies and enumerates distinct categories, including actor description, authority, comparison, evidentiality, illustration (through examples), metaphor, polarization, and so on. The following analysis is conducted from two major perspectives: metaphor and evidentiality.

5.2.1. Major Content of the Five Articles

The article “On the Astronomy and Geography” presents the fundamental premise that “God creates everything in the universe”. This assertion was employed to remind readers to bear this notion in mind. The subsequent article “On the Centrality of the Sun” primarily introduces the dimensions of the Sun. The third article introduces the seven planets and their movement around the Sun, as well as the rationale behind their luminosity. The fourth article, “On the Satellites”, provides a concise overview of the nature of satellites and indicates that the Moon is the Earth’s satellite. The fifth article focuses on the question of whether the Earth is a globe or a flat surface.

The astronomical concepts therein were regarded as fundamental knowledge for the LMS missionaries at the time. Prior to departure for China, the missionaries typically undertook a systematic training organized by the LMS directors, which included a two-year science program encompassing “natural and experimental philosophy such as electricity, pneumatics, optics, hydrostatics and chemistry” (Daily 2013, p. 95). In contrast, the Chinese migrants in Southeast Asia, who were predominantly fishermen, artisans, and tradesmen with limited formal education, exhibited a lack of scientific literacy, particularly in the realm of natural philosophy. Furthermore, the majority of these migrants had been educated to believe that the sky was a dome and the earth a square. Consequently, the LMS missionaries disseminated basic astronomical knowledge with the intention of modifying the long-held mental model of the universe among the Chinese migrants. This was performed with the ultimate goal of confirming their belief in the greatness of God as the creator. Two major strategies were employed to achieve this goal: the use of metaphor and the presentation of detailed evidence.

5.2.2. Use of Metaphor

Metaphors have been employed to elucidate astronomical laws. To illustrate, in the article “On the Planets”, the editor utilized the metaphor of a “king and his ministers” to delineate the interrelationship between the Sun and the other seven planets, including the Earth. The text is as follows: “The Sun is situated in the sky, while the King is in his country. There are ministers who perpetually accompany and serve the King, and there are satellites that perpetually move around the Sun” [ri zaitian, ru jun zaiguo ye, jun you dachen changshi er suizhe zhi, ri yi you shu daxing chang shi er zhouwei zhi xingzou ye 日在天，如君在國也，君有大臣常侍而隨着之，日亦有數大星常侍而周圍之行走也] (Milne 2021, p. 56). For Chinese migrants in Southeast Asia, the concept of the Earth as a “planet” was novel, as they had been educated that the Earth was the center of the universe. In order to alter the readers’ understanding of the Earth–Sun relationship, the article employed the metaphor of the “minister and the king”, which was familiar to the migrants.

In the article “On the Satellites”, a comparable metaphor was employed to explain the interrelationship between the planets and their satellites. The original text is as follows: “Four of the seven planets have their own satellites…the satellites serve their planets in a manner analogous to the way that petty officials serve high-ranking officials” [ru xiaochen shi dachen 如小臣侍大臣] (ibid., p. 56). The “official” metaphor was used to elucidate the nature of the satellites and to provide a vivid depiction of the satellite-planet relation. It activated the corresponding knowledge about Qing’s official system of Chinese readers and enabled them to gain a deeper comprehension of unfamiliar astronomical knowledge.

5.2.3. Presentation of Evidential Facts

In the article “The Earth as a Planet”, a number of phenomena observed in everyday life are presented as evidence of the Earth’s spherical shape. One such phenomenon is the apparent change in the size of boats and their masts as observed from the shore when the boat draws near to the shoreline. The observer stood on the shore, observing the approaching boat. The text described the experience as follows: “when you look at an approaching boat, you first see the high mast; the whole boat can only be seen when it is close to the shore” [chang xian kande chuan zhi gaogui, ranhou chuan jianjian jin an lai, kejian qi quanshen ye 常先看得船之高桅，然後船漸漸近岸來，可見其全身也] (ibid., p. 57). Such a portrayal is authentic and dependable, as readers may find themselves relating to it on the basis of their own experience, thereby reinforcing the argument that the Earth is a round globe instead of a flat square. Another example is that of observing the sun set from varying heights. This prompts the reader to consider the reason for the disparate results of sunset observation. The text delineated the experience as follows: “an individual situated on a flat surface would perceive the sun to have set; however, the person positioned at the summit of a mountain at the same time would observe the sun to still be in the process of setting” [ren zhu pingdi shang zhe, kan ri yiluo le, er ren li gaoshan ding zhe, bi shike, ke mingkan ri weiceng luo 人住平地上者，看日已落了，而人立高山頂者，彼時刻，可明看日未曾落] (ibid., p. 58). This case is also a common phenomenon in everyday life, and readers are likely to accept such evidence. A detailed account of these commonly observed facts would serve to reinforce the arguments that the Earth is spherical.

Furthermore, numbers were employed in the text to accentuate related arguments. In the early nineteenth century, the general public in China still held the view that the Sun was a diminutive plate suspended in the sky. The article “On the Centrality of the Sun” utilized figures to correct the erroneous perceptions regarding the Sun’s dimensions. The text is as follows: “the Sun is more than 9 Yi [億] (900 million) times larger than the Earth; the distance between the Earth and the Sun is greater than 300 Zhao [兆] (300 trillion) Li [里] (approximately 500 m)” [ri zhi da shengyu di zhi da yue jiuyi yu bei yi, ri nai lidi yue sanbai zhao li youyu ye 日之大勝於地之大約九億餘倍矣，日乃離地約三百兆里有餘也] (ibid., p. 55). The use of figures is an effective method which will leave a lasting impression on the reader, thus enhancing the persuasiveness of an argument.

In conclusion, the two principal strategies deployed in the CMM to rectify the readers’ perceptions of the universe were the use of metaphor and evidential facts. By comparing the planetary system to the governmental system, the editor was able to elucidate the relationship between the Sun, the planets, and the satellites. By presenting a series of well-evidenced facts pertaining to everyday life, the editor was able to provide a compelling argument that the Earth was a sphere rather than a flat plane. A full comprehension and acceptance of the astronomical knowledge may contribute to a transformation in the readers’ perception of the universe and potentially lead to an embrace of the notion that “God was the supreme architect”. It can be concluded that the LMS missionaries in Southeast Asia disseminated astronomical knowledge with the intention of revising Chinese migrants’ cognition about the universe. The fundamental goal was to put forth a novel model and to prompt readers to revere the LMS’s God.

5.3. Mental Model of the Geographic Knowledge in Travelling West

In Travelling West, two models are presented. The first concerns the traveling experience of the narrator Chen-You-Ju-Shi, thereby forming an experience model. The second concerns the retelling of a story to Chinese migrant readers, thereby forming a context model with specific communicative roles.

Table 3. The experience model and context model in Travelling West.

Factors	Experience Model	Context Model
Actor	Chen-You-Ju-Shi [塵遊居士] (narrator)	Robert Morrison (actual writer)
Social Role	A Chinese gentleman living in Sichuan, China	Missionary of the LMS
Date	1801 or 1811 (Shen 2004)	1819
Event	A comprehensive account of the locations, customs, laws, social conventions, language, and history of all the countries on the route	To recount and publish the travel notes
Location	The route traversed all the way to the west encompassed the regions of Sichuan, Xizang, France, America, Japan, and Xiamen	Southeast Asia
Ideological Position	Traditional Chinese culture and values	Protestant faith
Ideological Others	Religious beliefs that are not aligned with Confucianism	Religious beliefs other than Protestant
Target Recipient	People interested in travel stories or geography	Chinese migrants in Southeast Asia
Intention	To describe his journey to the west and what he saw and heard	To show the civilization of Western countries; to prove that the Earth is a sphere

provides an analysis of the factors involved in the experience model and the context model.

In the experience model, the narrator presented a comparative analysis of the political and legal systems, social conventions, and numerous other aspects of Western countries with those of China. He expressed admiration for the advanced science and technology, as well as the rich history of philosophy and languages in Europe. However, it should be noted that this story was in fact retold and published by the LMS missionary Robert Morrison. Therefore, the seemingly objective geographic knowledge about the Western countries actually contains ideological goals.

In 1819, the Qing Dynasty still adhered to the “closed-door policy”. Such a policy resulted in China becoming isolated from the rest of the world, with many Chinese people remaining unaware of the technological and industrial progress that was occurring in Western countries. Chinese migrants who shuttled between the Chinese coastland and the Southeast Asian regions exhibited a greater degree of openness to external influences. However, they were still influenced profoundly by the tenets of Confucian culture. The notions of being a “gentleman” [Jun Zi, 君子], and that a gentleman should “engage in reading ten thousands of books and traveling ten thousand miles” [du wan juan shu, xing wan li lu 讀萬卷書，行萬裡路], were highly esteemed. This was also exemplified by the “Hua-Yi distinction” or “Chinese-Barbarian Distinction” [hua yi zhi bie 華夷之別], which claimed Chinese superiority and the inferiority of surrounding countries (Pines 2005, p. 62). Consequently, the migrants remained uninformed and indifferent to Western countries, which were characterized as uncivilized tribes.

Robert Morrison, as the publisher, tried to change such views by presenting a comprehensive overview of the strengths of European countries, which would serve as persuasive evidence for the intelligence of Protestant belief as well. He described a flourishing and civilized Western society through the narration of a Chinese gentleman, whose statements were deemed reliable due to his esteemed identity within the Confucian culture. In conclusion, the mental model underlying the geographical knowledge presented in this book can be summarized as follows: the comprehensive prosperity and advancement of Western countries demonstrate the superiority of Protestant belief.

5.4. Discursive Strategy of the Geographic Discourse in Travelling West

The analysis of discursive strategies in Travelling West is conducted through the following aspects: authority, topos, evidentiality, and positive self-presentation and negative other-presentation.

5.4.1. Citing Authoritative Values

In order to establish a closer connection with the reader, the writer drew upon Confucian values that were widely accepted in China and, thus, describes the narrator as an authentic Confucian literatus. In the preface, the narrator presented the rationale behind embarking on the journey to the west as follows:

“If one doesn’t observe the vast universe, he will be shallow with limited knowledge; mountains and rivers in distant locations were formed in ancient times, yet their appearance continues to evolve. I was born in western Sichuan and enjoyed travelling in my younger years. I aspire to visit all the places depicted on maps……I would like to visit and see the unmapped areas, acquiring information about the global situation……It is expected to provide reference for the followers” [當謂人不廣觀宇宙之大，則識見未宏，而所知有限，夫山川河岳，絕域殊方，棋布星羅，萬古有一定之形，而亦有因時而異。予乃西蜀人也，壯歲遨遊，竊有志于版圖所載……問于典籍所未及載者，得以身曆而目擊之，其于天下之形勢，燎如指掌……為后學者之一助云爾]

(Morrison 1819, pp. 1a–1b)

As stated in the preface, the goal of Chen-You-Ju-Shi’s westward journey was to investigate hitherto unknown areas for the benefit of future generations. In Confucian culture, a true gentleman should endeavor to cultivate good morals and a broad horizon. Reading and traveling are the two major means of attaining wisdom and developing an excellent disposition. This is evidenced by the famous Chinese proverb “it is not enough merely to read books; you must also be well-traveled [讀萬卷書，行萬裡路]”. Such a viewpoint is rooted in Chinese cognition. Therefore, Chen-You-Ju-Shi, as an adherent of traditional Confucian values, would be regarded as a Chinese gentleman with an expansive intellect and reliable character. The target readers would be inclined to accept the veracity of his travel account and were receptive to the information he conveyed. The strategy of employing authoritative values serves to establish a positive image of the main actor, thereby reducing the doubts that readers may have regarding the descriptions of Europe.

5.4.2. Utilization of Topos

Topoi can be described as parts of argumentation which belong to the obligatory, and are either explicit, inferable, or self-evident premises (Wodak 2006, p. 74). This strategy is frequently employed when attempting to persuade an audience of one’s interests, visions, or positions (Wodak 2009, p. 44). Topoi is often used when writing or talking about the “others”. As previously discussed, the actual writer of Travelling West was Robert Morrison, a Protestant. Therefore, other religious beliefs would be considered as the “ideological others”.

The gentleman Chen-You-Ju-Shi was able to learn about diverse religious beliefs as he journeyed to various places, and when he commented on religious beliefs other than Christianity, the strategy of topoi was employed to convey an objective stance and impartial attitude. For instance, when he arrived in Xizang (the Tibetan areas), he learned about Tibetan Buddhism, then made the following comments: “there are a lot of unfounded statements in the world, but a serious scholar should not dismiss all of them, nor should he believe all of them; by carefully examining, selecting, and discriminating, the scholar can find the truth and insist on it, and thus he will be a true gentleman (Jun-Zi)” [Shijian wugen zhi yan bushao, xuezhe buyi jinran quzhi; bing buyi jinran xinzhi, nai yongxin xikao ze qi zhenli er sishou zhi, fangcheng junzi 世間無根之言不少，學者不宜儘然去之；並不宜儘然信之，乃用心細考擇其真理而死守之，方成君子] (Morrison 1819, pp. 2b–3a). Such a comment is in fact a premises applicable for most situations, as any sensible person will think about what others say and distinguish right from wrong. Here the writer utilized the strategy of topoi to remind the reader of the rationality of Tibetan Buddhism and not to follow such beliefs easily.

However, in the Chapter “Ghosts and Gods” [gui shen 鬼神], Chen-You-Ju-Shi described Christian belief in detail without any such reminder. He narrated the birth and death of Jesus, as well as his deeds on Earth, as follows: “In a prophecy made to an ancient sage, it was foretold that Jesus, the son of God, would arrive on earth to redeem humans. At the time of Emperor Xiao of the Han Dynasty, a saint was born…he performed miracles for thirty-three years” [tianlaoye yu shanggu qishi gu shengren zhiyan, yu jiang tianzhizi yesu bi jiangshi, wei shu ren zui deng yu, dao hanxiaodi shijian, guoyou yiwei dashengren chushi… qi chuan tianyi duoxing shenji sanshisan nian 天老爺於上古啟示古聖人之言，預講天之子耶穌必降世，為贖人罪等語，到漢孝帝時間，果有一位大聖人出世……其傳天意多行神迹三十三年] (ibid., pp. 24a–24b). The description was concluded with “so the Europeans adhere to the teachings of Jesus, rather than those of Buddhism or the Bodhisattva” [xi you luo ba geguo suoxin, bing buxin fo buxin pusa zhi lei 係友羅巴各國所信，並不信佛不信菩薩之類] (ibid., pp. 24b–25a). The text explained the rationale of European adherence to Christianity in detail, seeking to demonstrate that such faith was well-founded, and, thus, in contrast with Buddhism. The difference between introducing “the others” and “the self” reflects the hidden ideological stance of the writer, namely, that the Christian God is the true God, and this has been proven with credible evidence.

5.4.3. Positive “Self” and Negative “Others”

According to the narrator (Chen-You-Ju-Shi), he stayed in Paris for three years and was treated to a private study room, thus learning about local languages and culture. He praised the long history of European civilization as well as the atmosphere of intellectual curiosity as follows: “local scholars all study the classics of Rome and Greece…many poems and epics were survived to this day…most of European scholars advocate scientific research, hoping to know the nature of the universe” [wei xue luoma yu e-li-xi-ya liangge guguo zhi wenzi…qi yixia geyang shi shi deng shu… youluoba shizi duo shang gewu zhi xue, yi yu mingxiao wanwu zhi xing 爲學羅馬與額利西亞兩個古國之文字…其遺下各樣詩、史等書…友羅巴士子多尚格物之學，意欲明曉萬物之性] (ibid., pp. 5b–6a). In ancient China, Confucian scholar often enjoyed very high status; Chen-You-Ju-Shi described the students in Paris as “western Confucian scholars” [xi ru 西儒] (ibid., p. 9b) and gave high praise to them. However, the actual “speaker” was the LMS missionary Robert Morrison, and the above words were in fact an extolment of Western civilization. Morrison attempted to portray a positive image of Western countries through the narrator’s descriptions.

While trying to present a positive image of Europe, the author also criticized the negative aspects of Chinese culture. For example, on the section about the origin of the Earth, Chen-You-Ju-Shi queried the traditional Chinese concepts as follows: “before this world came into existence, there was in its place a confused mass of shapeless elements called chaos [hun dun 混沌], this is the theory about the earth that has been passed down from my grandmother and my mother to me; they also told me that Pan Gu was the first creator of the earth [hundun chukai, qiankun shiji deng yu, shi mou cong mu nai suo yin zhi li; you yun pangu wei kaipi shoujun deng shuo 混沌初開，乾坤始奠等語，是某從母奶所飲之理；又雲盤古爲開闢首君等説] (ibid., p. 7a); but this is unreasonable as something cannot be born from nothing; if there is a book, there must firstly be an writer” [nai fan yuan wu zhi wu, bi lai xianyou zhe shiqi decheng, fang ke youzhi; dang youle yi shu, ze bi xianyou yiren cai kede chengshu ye 乃凡原無之物，必賴先有者使其得成，方可有之；當有了一書，則必先有一人才可得成書也] (ibid., p. 7b). For centuries, the theory that Pan Gu [盤古] split the chaos and created the Earth had been passed down from generation to generation in China. Every Chinese child must have heard this story. However, the narrator questioned this concept and reminded the readers to think about its plausibility.

In the section about lunar eclipse, the narrator criticized traditional Chinese cognition as follows: “a lunar eclipse occurs when Earth lines up directly between the Sun and the Moon, blocking the Sun’s rays and casting a shadow on the Moon; so our ancestors are not able to explain all the astronomical phenomena correctly, and some of the traditional concepts and customs are even proved to be wrong” [kejian guren weihui yangyang shi jinran mingxiao, dan neizhong guren yijian fengsu jie yi hui cuole 可見古人未會樣樣事儘然明曉，但內中古人意見風俗皆亦會錯了] (ibid., p. 15b). The narrator also criticized many Chinese customs, such as “predicting future based on celestial events” [yi tianwen tui suan weilai zhishi 以天文推算未來之事], the need to “choose an auspicious day” [xuan jiri 選吉日] for important events, and the concept of a “geomantic omen” [feng shui 風水] (ibid., p. 9b). By comparing different concepts in China and the West, the actual writer Morrison constructed a positive self (an advanced Europe) and a negative other (a backward China). The advancements in science and technology of European countries further justifies the superiority of Christian belief in the text.

5.4.4. Presentation of Evidential Details

One core intention of Travelling West is to demonstrate that the Earth is a sphere. The book included a world map, on which the locations and names of the major countries and oceans were clearly marked. This map is convincing as it provided geographic information in detail with clear longitude and latitude lines. The text also introduced the latitudes of capitals for major cities of China and Europe with specific figures.

For example, the text describes the following: “Guangzhou city is located at 23 degrees north latitude; Beijing locates at 40 degrees 30 min north latitude; the capital of Russia lies on 60 degree north latitude” [Guangzhou cheng zai bei you ershisan du…jingcheng zai bei you sishi du sanshi fen…e-luo-si guo jingdu zai bei you liushi du 廣州城在北有二十三度…京城在北有四十度三十分…俄羅斯國京都在北有六十度] (ibid., p. 11b). At the end of the book, the narrator highlighted that he kept heading west and never back to the east, finally returning back home [zhouyou diqiu cong qicheng xifa, yi fu zuo benjia, weiyou huitou dongxing, qifei mingju yi dixing xi yuanqiu ye 周遊地球從起程西發，迨復坐本家，未有回頭東行，豈非明據以地形係圓球也] (ibid., p. 27b). All these detailed data and descriptions enhance the credibility of the argument, making the readers accept the fact that the Earth is indeed a sphere instead of a square. This further corrected their incorrect concept that China was at the center of the square while all the other countries were oriented around China. If the Chinese readers’ cognition about the geographic locations of different countries was reshaped, their attitude towards Western culture and the Christian belief may also have been reshaped—this was the real intention behind the above geographic knowledge.

6. Conclusions

In the early nineteenth century, LMS missionaries in China were subject to various restrictions that prohibited them from preaching on the Chinese mainland. Consequently, the Ultra-Ganges Missions were established in Southeast Asia in 1815 as an alternative proposal to proselytize Chinese migrants residing there. In a letter dated 23 October 1816, Milne outlined a strategy for preaching as follows:

From the writing of the Chinese, and from what has come within my observation, I feel fully persuaded that their sentiments are diametrically contrary to genuine philosophy…Every inch of ground must be fought for. Everything advanced by us, whether concerning God, nature or religion comes in contact with some of their own dogmas. In order to be effective with learned Chinese, their own philosophy must be shaken, and the theories which are the foundation of their theology overthrown, an attempt must be made to introduce principles of Christianity, the world, the heavens and the law of nature.

(Milne 1816, p. 5)

It can be seen that Milne was determined to change the philosophy and theories held by local Chinese individuals regarding the world, the heavens, and nature. Teaching scientific knowledge would be a wise plan to achieve this goal. In fact, the founders of the LMS were mainly Congregationalists from the intellectual class, who were influenced by Calvin’s doctrine and believed that education was a pivotal force in the success of missionary endeavors (James 1923, pp. 46–47; Goodall 1954, p. 456). Under such an agenda, the two main figures at the mission station, Robert Morrison and William Milne, compiled and published a number of articles and books containing fundamental astronomical and geographical knowledge. This was carried out with the goal of educating local migrants who evinced minimal interest in Western societies and Christian belief. The dissemination of Western science had a profound impact on subsequent Protestant missionaries, who continued this endeavor when they were permitted to enter China after the First Opium War.

This study employs the socio-cognitive approach (SCA) to investigate the mental models and discourse strategies of LMS scientific publications in Southeast Asia. It aims to elucidate the motivation of spreading science by the LMS and other Protestant denominations in China during the early nineteenth century, through an in-depth analysis of scientific discourse. The methodology and findings of this study can complement the historical studies on the LMS’ printing cause in this time period.

This research focuses on two representative publications: the Chinese Monthly Magazine, edited by William Milne, and Memoir of Things Seen and Heard by Travelling West around the World, authored by Robert Morrison. The CMM provides detailed descriptions of specific astronomical phenomena and ascribes them to God’s design. The mental model of astronomical knowledge presented in the CMM can be summarized as follows: “It is God who creates and sustains all things in the universe.” Milne sought to supplant the readers’ pre-existing cognitive models of world formation with this mental model. Metaphors were employed to facilitate readers’ comprehension of new astronomical knowledge, and evidential experience in real life was employed to strengthen the reliability of related arguments.

There are two distinct mental models in Travelling West. The first is the experience model in the narration of Chen-You-Ju-Shi, and the second is the context model of the book’s publication by Robert Morrison. The two models seek to portray the geographical locations of different countries and to illustrate the civilization of European societies through the narrator’s traveling experience. Combining the two models, it becomes clear that the true objective of disseminating geographic knowledge was twofold: first, to substantiate the superiority of Western culture, and second, to challenge the erroneous perception that China was situated at the center of the world. This would, in turn, facilitate a change in attitude towards Christian belief. By citing authoritative Confucian values, the writer sought to portray the narrator as a respectable Confucian scholar, thereby enhancing the reliability of his words. The deployment of topoi encourages readers to suspect the rationality of religions other than Christianity. The strategy of constructing a positive self and a negative other serves to prove the superiority of European civilization and the backwardness of Chinese science. The presentation of world maps and related statistical evidence serves to substantiate the assertion that the Earth is a sphere, rather than a flat plane.

The investigation into the mental models of the astronomical and geographical discourse by the LMS in Southeast Asia demonstrates that the LMS missionaries’ efforts in scientific education were not merely an act of disseminating science. The actual objective was to modify the Chinese migrants’ comprehension of the world’s formation, influencing their perception of European scientific strength and Christian culture.

After the First Opium War, the Qing government granted permission for Protestant missionaries to enter China. However, these missionaries encountered a similar situation to the one which Morrison and Milne had experienced in Southeast Asia—there was a general lack of comprehension of Western society and a concomitant disdain for Western culture among the Chinese. Consequently, Protestant missionaries continued to translate and publish scientific books and journals with the goal of changing the Chinese population’s worldview and propagating the superiority of Christian culture. Nevertheless, this aim was ultimately unattainable, as religion and science were never as intimately intertwined in the Chinese consciousness as they were in Western culture.