Confucianism and Legalism - Essay Example

inserts His/her inserts inserts Grade   Confucianism and Legalism China is one of the oldest civilizations is the history of mankind. The history of China is built on a series of philosophies which have always been a guiding factor in the search for progress. The earliest literature of China can be clearly reflected in Confucius ideas. The earliest works of Confucius include the Classic of Documents, Classic of Odes, and The Spring and Autumn Annals. Confucius was appointed a transmitter, editor and commentator to sell his ideas to the people and enhance progress in the civilization. The Five Confucius Classics have become the bible for the Confucian school of thought which comprised the followers of Confucius. These people propagated the ideas of Confucius as a philosophy in the human race. This is not only done as guidance for living up to the ideas of Confucius but also as a direction in politics and a sense of morality. Confucius strongly affected the historical make-up of East Asia, the neighbors of China, especially Japan and Korea. Considering the Chosen dynasty in Korea, the influence of Confucius took over much of what we can see. The Yi dynasty accredited for introducing the Chinese examination system during the Tang dynasty. During this critical era, Chinese people adhered to the principles of Confucianism. Legalism, the so called “school of law", rose as one of the mainstreams of Chinese philosophy though it never lasted for long. Legalism is quite different from the ideas of Confucianism. The rationale behind legalism was law, which is a main principle in legalism. Because legalism has a mistrust of human nature, which was regarded as a lazy and cowardly creature, like the view of Xunzi, the law should create order and eliminate chaos. Both the thoughts and practices of Confucianism and legalism have expanded to become a tool for the betterment of individuals. The Chinese had put much interest on both philosophies which subsequently became deep rooted into their culture. There are similarities and comparisons between the great philosophies, Confucianism and Legalism to the principal values or norms of conduct. Confucius favorable view on human nature and its optimism were more persuasive to people of during that period, although in China today there still exists a legalist society but not as severely and strict as in Qin dynasty. In the third and second century B.C.E., when rivalry among the Warring states was getting more complex and competitive, legalism had risen as a new ideology that was in opposition to Confucianism. One of Confucianism thoughts was to reflect the past so that bad things would never be repeated. Legalism on the other hand focuses on the present and lends a deaf ear to the past. Confucianism always concerned about humanity, mercy and compassion. Legalists think it is indulgence and weakness that leads to laziness of the human race. In legalism, human nature is naturally selfish and bad that it emphasizes the need of law over all humans concerns. According to the founder of legalism, Hsun Tzu, the human mind is naturally evil and inclined to commit a crime. It applies to all and has a sense of desire to unite people under the one ruler. However, humans have the potential to be good even though they are born evil. In this fact, Confucius rejected the idea of Legalism on human nature. Confucianism represents the human nature as good beings. Confucius thought that human beings could be developed through education and government. On the other hand, Legalists rather thought that better governance and the rule of law could make humanity better. Reflecting on what the present people think on the view of human nature, I rather follow the idea of Confucianism that is optimistic than that of Legalism. When babies are born, they dont know the exact feelings of hatred, envy, and desire for profit and beautiful sounds. They are innocent creatures when they are born. As they grow up, they begin to get to know the feelings of distinguishing between good and evil. This is the meaning of conscience. Since humans have begun to have a sense of conscience, they can sometimes be evil and good, depending on their set of mind and ability of controlling it. Through good education, an evil person can transform into a better person. Under good education from the family, one can behave in a good way and avoid evil. In legalism, where there are punishments and rewards following the conduct of human, there is an order in society. According to a master of legalism, Han Fei-Tzu, human nature is no good and is totally impossible to improve. Only material rewards and punishment can make one to do the right things. Whoever disobeys kings commands would never be forgiven. The source of absolute power in the state could only be given to one man, the ruler. One similarity between Confucianism and Legalism is that both philosophies supported the hierarchy system. Today, in Chinese society, capital punishment still remains sign of strong legalism. Most of the developed countries are banning capital punishment because it violates the dignity of human beings. Today, China has a Communist state government that is run by the communist party, remaining one of few types of government. Since China has a communist government, some marks of legalism exist in politics, ethnics, and society. Although the movement of reforms has been taking place, Confucianism and legalism would not be taken off from the flow of changing events. Confucianism came as a gentle vehicle for building civilization while Legalism came as a harsh force for people to establish binding strong centralized government. This is reflected in the values that both Confucianism and legalism emphasize.Confucius thought that the lowest of all social norms was the law. Law is the lack of spiritual thinking and respect of dignity of humans, which are the superior norms. Treating all people in the same measurement of punishments is not an effective way of governance. It could make people act without a sense of shame. In this way, people would only try to avoid punishments and not realize what important values were applied to their lives or seek for the betterment of their lives. Confucius associated the moral nobility with three practices, which are filial devotion (Xiao), ritual decorum (li) and humaneness (ren). (Debary and Bloom, 43).These are the main points regarding the principles of Confucianism. Confucius put forward the perspective of the Ru, which is a basis for the character of morality, giving a direction to promote the style and manners of noble men. In the book “Source of Chinese Tradition” authored by De Bary and Bloom, a demonstration is given on the nature of a good man. The noble person is the one who is inclusive and is concerned about the roots, rightness, and neighbors and loves the past.The small person is only exclusive and is concerned about gain or profit. The master said, “The noble person cultivates himself with reverence.” He cultivates himself in order to bring peace to others. He cultivates himself so as to give peace to all the people – Yao and Shun were also anxious about this (Debary and Bloom, 59). Because Yao and Shun were rulers who showed good examples of government, people had great respect for them. They were the great beneficiaries to the common people, who are described as models of a ruler. Morality had a further interpretation to the family unit. Confucianism stresses on the unity of family so that each member loves and respects one another. Compared to this, legalism doesn’t consider family as an important unity. Rather, it stresses on the need to report crimes. Failure to report a crime committed by a member of one’s household would bring the strong punishment, but reporting it would bring rewards. Legalists proposed the matter of a larger group and the state against family. Legalists believed in using the force and to be persuasive to people as Confucius did. The five relationships set by Confucius include Ruler to Subject, Father to Son, Elder Brother to Younger Brother, Husband to Wife, and Friend to Friend. These five relationships that have lasted for years and are collectively called filial piety. Confucius said that each person has a certain position to fulfill. Filial piety is always the basis before it comes to fulfillment of anything. This concept has strongly affected Korean history as well. Having reverence to the elders is still an important practice in Korean tradition. However, this has been ignored as new generations continue to appear with time. In the Chinese empire, the fundamental principle of Mandate of Heaven was applied. Mandate of Heaven is an abstract view of nature. It can be interpreted as spiritual, time, and space. The concept of heaven is supernatural and the heaven judges what is good or bad. Just as Confucius regarded the past as a good foundation to make a better future, Heaven has a sense of ancestral power. Reflecting and knowing the past definitely helped people to avoid past mistakes. If a ruler dictates and fails to obey the rule of Heaven, he would be punished and abdicated from the throne.In the worst case; heaven would cause strong disasters as punishments. The ruler should rule the people in a just way that would please him if he were to be ruled. Mandate of Heaven pursued a harmonious relationshipbetween heaven and the common people. During Han dynasty, both Confucianism and legalism were blended into the social norms. First of all, there were lots of Confucius writings. One goal of the state was the well being of the people. This isn’t forceful at all. Heaven was a source of life- giving the birth. This means that the Mandate of Heaven and filial piety were moral basis for ruling. On the other hand, greatest security and prosperity were goals for legalists. In a fact that sincerity and uprightness were essential ideas of the empire, some features of legalism still worked as a way of the living Chinese society. There were two fundamental principles of Confucius that never got changed. Humanness and righteousness were primary Confucius’ virtues. Even though Confucianism and Legalism have distinct differences, both thoughts were blended well into the Chinese theory of empire. During the legalism period, all literatures on Confucius’ work were banned such as Autumn Annals and Book of Odes. Some of those were confiscated so that people would have to focus on the Legalism and would not be distracted by any philosophies. In conclusion, it can be realized and emphasized that Confucianism as a political philosophy was largely adopted in China after the abandonment of legalism. The major focus of Confucianism is humanism. It seeks to cultivate a culture of humanness and ethical consideration, which are expected to create the social unity within the community. In such a case, one is advised to give up their lives if possible for the sake of upholding and ensuring the high ethical and moral expectations. It is further imperative to note that Confucianism as an ideology, is non-theistic as it does not involve belief in any divine being. On the other hand, legalism is seen as a Christian theology that focuses on the exercise of discipline of conduct or the absolution in legal ideas. As such, aspects as the grace of God and mercy are neglected. As a political philosophy, legalism did not however address the central question pertaining to the purpose of life and the nature of man. It focuses on the three principles that a ruler should take into account in the process of governing his people. Work Cited Bloom, Irene, and William Theodore Debary. Principle and practicality: essays in neo-Confucianism and practical learning. New York: Columbia Univ. Pr., 1979. Print. Read More