Transcript Slide 1

Confucius
551 BCE – 479 BCE
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Confucius’ portrait
done by Wu Daozi
or Wu Daozi (680740) 吴道子 who
was a Chinese artist
of the Tang
Dynasty.
A Brief Bio
551 to 479 BCE
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Known as Kong Qiu (孔丘), courtesy name, Zhongni (仲尼).
Confucius was born in 551 BCE in the State of Lu (the south of
modern-day Shandong Province). His father Shu lianghe (叔梁紇
) was a famous warrior who was appointed as a senior
government official at the City of Zou (Shandong Province).
After having nine daughters, he finally got a son. However, the
boy Mengpi fell off a tree at 7 and limped around ever since.
When his wife passed away, it was very hard for him to take
care of his children.
He proposed to Family Yan, hoping to marry one of the five
daughters.
Father Yan let his daughters make a decision on their own.
Zheng Zai, the youngest, expressed her love. By the time
Confucius was born, his father was about 70 years old.
Confucius lost his father when he was three years old and grew
up in poverty.
The Analects
http://ctext.org/confucianism
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There are 20 books
The traditional titles given to
each chapter are mostly the
initial two or three
characters.
Translated by James Legge
理雅各; December 20, 1815
– November 29, 1897) was a
noted Scottish sinologist.
Other versions: D. C. Lau
Ebrey on Confucius
Chapter 2: page 26-27
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The core Confucian Virtues
1 仁【rén】 benevolence; humanity
2 孝【xiào】 filial piety;
3 义【yì】 integrity; righteousness;
4 忠【zhōng】 loyalty; constancy
5 信【xìn】honesty
6 敬【jìng】 reverence; respect;
7 礼【lǐ】 proprity; ritual decorum; courtesy;
etiquette;
How to get along with each other
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己所不欲，勿施於人
“… not to do to others as you would not wish done to
yourself” (The Analects 12.2)
New International Version (©1984)
So in everything, do to others what you would have
them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the
Prophets. (Matthew 7.12)
King James Bible: Therefore all things whatsoever ye
would that men should do to you, do ye even so to
them: for this is the law and the prophets.
The Universal Golden Rule
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The Golden Rule or ethic of reciprocity is a
maxim, ethical code, or morality that essentially
states either of the following:
(Positive form): One should treat others as one
would like others to treat oneself.
(Negative/prohibitive form, also called the Silver
Rule): One should not treat others in ways that one
would not like to be treated.
This concept describes a "reciprocal" or "two-way"
relationship between one's self and others that
involves both sides equally and in a mutual fashion.
Confucius’ Contributions
“Father of Education”
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Frederick W. Mote credited Confucius with
three contributions to Chinese education:
1. the creation of the role of the private
teacher;
2. the creation and establishment of the
content of education, its methods and ideals.
3. the most important is Confucius made
education possible to students from all walks
of life, including those who were very poor;
The Intellectual Foundations of China, 1998.
Frederick W. Mote
Alma mater: University of Nanjing
University of Washington (1954, PhD)
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Fredrick W. Mote (June 2,
1922–February 10, 2005)
was an American Sinologist
and a professor of History at
Princeton University for
nearly 50 years. His research
and teaching interests
focused on China during the
Ming Dynasty and the Yuan
Dynasty. In collaboration
with Professor Twitchett and
Professor Fairbank he helped
create The Cambridge
History of China, a
monumental (though still
incomplete) history of China.
论语【Lúnyǔ】 The Analects of
Confucius; The Analects.
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The Lun yu is the first example of what is called yu lu
语录 or record of conversations. It purports to be a
record of the conversations Confucius had with his
disciples. Although it probably was compiled after
Confucius’ death, much of the material probably is
based on actual sayings and speeches made by the
master himself. There also are a number of
passages that describe Confucius’ actions and
conduct in various situations.
Chapter titles: the first two or three characters
Book XV.39
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“In instruction there
is no grading into
categories” (159).
Before Confucius,
only sons of nobles
and a’ristocrats
could be educated.
3,000 disciples, 72
worthies or notables
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有教无类
【yǒujiàowúlèi】
in education,
there is no
distinction
between classes
of men.
学问【xuéwen】 learning;
knowledge; scholarship.
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How knowledge is
accumulated?
Two ways:
To study
To ask
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不耻下问
【bùchǐxiàwèn】 not
feel ashamed to ask
and learn from one's
subordinates.
The Content
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Although education was quite specifically for one kind
of career--that of public service--Confucius believed
in the broad liberal arts learning. It included study of
venerated books, especially The Odes (The Book of
Songs—see Arthur Waley), the Book of Documents
(See Bernard Karlgren), and the ritual texts.
These texts were studied as both theoretical
philosophy and applied philosophy—In the west, the
division of philosophy into a practical and a
theoretical discipline has its origin in Aristotle's moral
philosophy and natural philosophy categories.
Content of Confucius’ Teaching
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Four branches & best
students:
Moral conduct: Yan
Yuan/Min Ziqian/Ran
Boniu/Zhong Gong;
Speech: Zai Wo/Zi
Gong;
Government affairs:
Ran You/Ji Lu;
Literature (Culture and
Learning): Zi You/Zi Xia
page 97 in the Analects
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Confucius’ teachings are
related to the Six
Branches of
Learning/Six Skills 六艺
in ancient times (since
the Zhou Dynasty):
Rites/Rituals
Music
Archery
Chariot Driving
Literature/Poetry
Arithmetic
Confucius’ Teaching Methods
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因材施教
【yīncáishījiào】
teach students in
accordance with
their aptitude.
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温故知新
【wēngùzhīxīn】
gain new insights
through restudying
old material;
reviewing past helps
one to understand
the present.
Confucius’ Teaching Methods
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举一反三
【jǔyīfǎnsān】
draw inferences
about other cases
from one instance.
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Indirect
Learn by analogy
Analogy is a method
that is
interdisciplinary in
nature
students were a cut above
common job seekers
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Overall, his students were a cut above
common job seekers. Most of them got
employed at different levels in government
affairs.
The content of Confucian education is
somewhat related to the so-called
六艺– the six arts/skills or branches of
learning in ancient China since the Zhou
Dynasty.
三纲五常 sāngāng wǔcháng
summarized by Dong Zhongshu 董仲舒 (179–104 BC)
in his book 《春秋繁露》
The Luxuriant Gems/Dews of the Spring and Autumn Annals
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The three cardinal
guides
ruler guides
subject,
father guides son
husband guides
wife
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The five constant
virtues:
benevolence;
righteousness,
propriety,
wisdom and
fidelity
as specified in the
feudal ethical code
A Web of Human Relationships
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The key to the teaching
of Confucius is the idea
of relationships
between or among
people.
Confucius believed that
people could live
together peacefully by
recognizing their roles
in networks of
relationships;
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The family was
seen as a
‘microcosm of
how relationships
linked people
together
Five-Fold Relationships Featured
with Hierarchy & Reciprocity
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Confucius used a model of
Five Relationships to suggest
how society might work;
The Five Relationships are
those between
ruler and subject;
father and son;
husband and wife;
elder brother and younger
brother;
friend to friend;
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Each of these involved both
hierarchy and
reci’procity;
In each pair, one role was
superior and one, inferior;
one role led and the other
followed;
Yet each involved mutual
obligations and
responsibilities;
Failure to properly fulfill
one’s role could lead to the
abrogation of the
relationship;
Individual’s role
in Government
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Inward, self
examination three
times a day to
become a
gentleman
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Confucius cited The
Book of Documents,
“…Simply by being
a good son and
friendly to his
brothers a man can
exert an influence
upon government”
(The Analects 2.21).
Inward Critical Examination
(The Analects 1.4)
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曾子曰：
「吾日三省
吾身：為人
謀而不忠乎？
與朋友交而
不信乎？傳
不習乎？」
The philosopher Zeng said,
"I daily examine myself on
three points: whether, in
transacting business for
others, I may have been not
faithful; whether, in
intercourse with friends, I
may have been not sincere;
whether I may have not
mastered and practiced the
instructions of my teacher."
Notes
1.1 stands for Book 1 Verse 1
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1.2 the way differs from Taoism that
favors something natural;
The core in Confucianism is morality,
rule by virtue/benevolence
The way refers to the web of human
relationships that is featured with
hierarchy and reciprocity
The Gentleman Junzi 君子
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Junzi, the gentleman, is the ideal figure for
Confucius.
The gentleman understands the workings of
relationships;
He observes proper ritual;
He engages in learning both to develop his personal
moral character and to gain knowledge that is useful
in serving others;
He seeks to promote the Way of living appropriate to
a well-ordered society through both personal
example and service in government;
The Number of Chariots
Symbolic of military Power (1.5)
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One chariot includes 4 horses;
A light chariot for offence: 75 foot
soldiers or infantryman;
A heavy chariot for defense: 25 soldiers
+ provisions
Every 100 residents had been provided
with a light chariot and a heavy chariot
Flexibility & Five Virtues
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1.8 A gentleman
who studies is
unlikely to be
inflexible.
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1.10
温/良/恭/俭/让
Cordial
Well-behaved;
Respectful;
Frugal
deferential
hé wéi guì
和 为 贵
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1.12 Harmony is the most valuable;
1.16 It is not the failure of others to
appreciate your abilities that should
trouble you, but rather your failure to
appreciate theirs;
On Government
Rule by Virtue
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2.3 Guide them by edicts, keep them in
line with punishments, and the common
people will stay out of trouble but will
have no sense of shame. Guide them
by virtue, keep them in line with the
rites, and they will, besides having a
sense of shame, reform themselves.
The Golden Mean
3.20 Translated by Arthur Waley
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Shih-ching (Shijing) the first anthology of
Chinese poetry, around 600 BC. It was compiled
by the ancient sage Confucius (551–479 BC)
and cited by him as a model of literary
expression, for, despite its numerous themes, the
subject matter was always “expressive of
pleasure without being licentious, and of grief
without being hurtfully excessive” (Lunyu or
The Analects).