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Abstract Abstract: With the global environmental situation deteriorating, a new paradigm of literary criticism originating in the West, i.e. ecocriticism, has developed into an international and multicultural movement. Thus cross-cultural ecological reinterpretation of classics becomes a key item of its agenda. Daodejing with its nature-oriented inclination, a Chinese cultural classic, certainly becomes the work of much concern from western ecocritics. They interpret it from different perspectives so as to dig out its ecological connotations whereby they could green Western mainstream culture and eliminate its dominant anthropocentric stubbornness. However, after carefully examining their ecological research on it, we could find that their analysis of Daodejing is biased, because their dualistic approach to Daodejing interpreted from the ecocentric perspective, attaching much importance to its ecological dimension, pays less attention to, or even ignores its social dimension---environmental justice. Their superficial analysis of the complicated interaction of both dimensions has resulted in that Daodejing is severely misread. Therefore, as Chinese ecocritics, we, with environmental justice in mind, should take a holistic approach to interpretation of the ecological implications of Daodejing so as to construct a practical and sustainable Daoist ecological ethic which integrates social justice with ecological justice.
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