Transcript Three Chinese Philosophies

Three Chinese Philosophies
Confucianism
Daoism
Legalism
Long, Long Ago,
During the Zhou Dynasty
In a Middle Kingdom
Far, Far Away . . .
Lived a Scholar Named
Confucius!
• Name: Kungfu Tze
• From a lower noble
family
• Sought a government
official job
• Goal: A Peaceful,
Harmonious Society
Basic Confucian Beliefs
• Man is good, if good examples are set for
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him
Filial Piety - devotion, loyalty to family
Obedience and respect for authority
Education is the only equalizer
Rulers should lead by setting a good
example
Confucius also said . . .
Confucius said:
Do not do to others
what you would not want
done to you
FILIAL PIETY
“A Son should not stray far from his parents while they are
alive . . . parents, when alive, should be served according
to ritual; when dead, they should be buried according to
ritual; they should be sacrificed to according to ritual."
Five Key Relationships
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Ruler and Subject
Husband and Wife
Parent and Child
Older and Younger Sibling
Friends
Unequal Relationships
(Kow Tow)
Confucius believed that if people performed their familial
roles properly, they would perform their roles in society and
government properly.
Confucius: In education there is no
class distinction.
• But in ancient China
only the sons of
wealthy nobles could
have the opportunity
to become educated.
Confucius said:
“If the Ruler is upright, then the
People will be upright”. The
emperor's role was like that of a
father: he would love his subjects
as if they were his children, and
they in turn would show loyalty
and respect for him.
Remember the Mandate of Heaven?
What were signs that a ruler was NOT
upright and had lost the Mandate?
Impact of Confucianism
• After his death, Confucius’ disciples wrote
his sayings in “The Analects”
• During the Han dynasty, it became the basis
of Chinese government bureaucracy (civil
service exams were based on Confucian
ideas and ancient Chinese books)
• It influenced social life, government and
education for over 2000 years.
Communists tried to end Confucian
ideas in the Mao era
• Children were encouraged to denounce
parents who were capitalist or Western.
• The government wanted loyalty to the state,
not the family.
• Yet in both Confucianism and Communism
loyalty to an authority or group is important.
• Confucianism was not successfully ended
by Mao.
What does Star Wars have to do
with the Chinese Philosophy
Daoism?
So What is Daoism?
• Lao Zi (Lao Tze) lived in the Zhou dynasty
as well
• It was a period of warring states, so he, too,
wanted a philosophy to bring peace and
harmony to China
• He sought harmony through following the
intuitive way of nature. . .
Lao Zi
• Little is known about
him
• May have been a clerk
in the imperial
archives
• Wrote the Dao de Jing
“The Way and its
Power”
• Disappeared westward
What is the Dao?
• is mysterious and profound;
• cannot be explained in
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words;
is the source of all life;
is always in motion;
permeates everything but
cannot be pinned down;
cannot be changed by
humans;
can be a source of power for
humans who act in accord
with it.
Daoists
• Have an intense love
of nature and
affirmation of life
• Sought physical
health, vitality,
longevity and even
immortality
Daoist landscape art
Wu Wei
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Just be
Take no specific action
Offer no resistance
Go with the flow of
nature.
• Emptiness
In harmony with nature
Daoist influences
Chinese science and invention
Math, Astronomy
Summary of Daoism
Harmony with Nature
Intuition
Legalism
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Qin Dynasty Emperor Shuhuangdi
Great Wall linked
Centralized power
Allowed agriculture and war
Burnt all books
Han Feizi
• Believed man is bad
• Punishments must be
harsh
• Similar to Machiavelli
in “The Prince”