Virtue: Ideals and Realities - Essay Example

Client’s Virtue: Ideals and Realities The idea of virtue is one that has been of constant discussion by those who create philosophical discourse. Way. Virtue, or de, is defined by Kong and Slingerland began as a right of the ruling class. Embracing the Way was a means to virtue. Confucius changed this to be within the power of the individual, not just the right of the ruling class. One of the first ways that Confucius discusses virtue is in relationship to honoring elders. Honoring elders is associated with honoring culture, which might be a way of the continuation of honoring the past. In addition to honoring elders, the path to virtue is found through restraint. This means that the individual must not indulge for personal satisfaction in order to stay on the path that will bring then to higher levels of achievement. When the individual behaves in a manner that expresses their position on the path as they are following the Way, the development of the community is achieved through right and moral good which in turn contributes to social betterment. Finding the Way is the path to finding virtue. The term virtue refers to moral worthiness, specifically and is referring to the power within the individual to act along the path. As Kong and Slingerland suggest, during the Shang period virtue was about the personal power within someone. This referred to charisma and the way in which the individual attracted people to them so that they would follow (242). This does not always mean that someone is good, however. A good example is that of Fidel Castro. One of the comments made by Barbara Walters when she had interviewed him was that she was wildly attracted to him and sexually compelled by his personal power (Ratcliff 130). In some interpretations of the Shang period of virtue, this would make Fidel Castro virtuous. The mark of this power was envisioned as a part of the divine right that was given to a leader as a blessing. The intention was to make the ruler seem that they were not to be questioned. The ruling position was deserved. The Zhou shifted this to mean that the observance of ritual was recognized by Heaven through which a ruler was then given divine blessing. What Confucius did was then place this not only within the power of the ruler, but into the power of the individual. This can almost be seen as the action that Martin Luther took when he opened up the path to God through the individual with the intervention of the priests no longer necessary. The sense of Heaven could be felt through the Way, and the way was accessible by the individual (Kong and Slingerland 242). Dao is a reference to the Way. The Way refers to a path, which Confucius defines as a literal way of doing things in order to meet certain expectations of what it means to be a good and wholesome person. The Way is distinctly defined by a means to morality, the path through which the individual must go in order to move towards living a moral life. Kong and Songerland write that “this Way is manifested in the ritual practices, music and literature passed down from the Golden Age of the Western Zhou” (243). This means that culture is highly important in fulfilling the path of the Way. Culture is of high importance to the practice of morality. In passage 1.6, the “Master said, ‘A young person should be filial when at home and respectful of his elders when in public. Conscientious and trustworthy, he should display a general care for the masses, but feel a particular affection for those who are Good. If he has any strength left over after manifesting theses virtues in practice, let him devote it to learning the cultural arts” (Kong and Slingerland 3). This task is both difficult and easy, the mandate depending on the nature of the individual and their position within the world. The individual who is inclined to have respect for their elders and is consistent in showing respect for the people in his or her environment and who has a desire to seek the learning about the cultural arts can accomplish this goal. The individual who is frustrated with their environment will likely not react respectfully on a consistent basis. The ways in which the individual expresses culture is very important in following the Way, and thus achieving a continuing virtue. Confucius goes on in 1.9 to discuss the importance of observing funerary rites, and that in doing so one is showing others the nature of virtue (Kong and Slingerland 4). Virtue is based upon the desire for respect to be the highest point of value in a society, creating virtue through showing how one honors others. Funerary rites are another way of honoring ancestors and elders. One of the more important ideas that must be understood is that in following the Way, one is being diligent about rites and rituals. A person who is following the prescribed rites and rituals of society is upon the path of the Way and is living in virtue. This means that the ideal is a goal that cannot always be attained and is dependent on the will of the individual who seeks to be virtuous. What exists and what is intended are not always the outcome. In passage 1.8 the Master speaks of the need to be serious, because of someone is not serious what they know will not be taken serious (Kong and Lingerland 3). There is a sense of conservatism that can be seen in the way in which Confucius conducts the progression of his argument. In 4.23 Confucius writes that “Very few go astray who comport themselves with restraint” (37). Following the path takes a sense of diligence and in trying to get to their goals; they must restrain themselves and keep upon the path without diverting themselves for selfish interests. An example can be made in the American Presidency of Bill Clinton. President Clinton had many worthy goals. As a leader he was charismatic and attracted a great number of followers. His Presidency was stalled, however, because he did not practice restraint, allowing something that might not have mattered to his goals to pull him from the path of virtue because of a behavior that could be exploited to impugn his reputation. While it might not have mattered how he behaved in relationship to his goals, his path of virtue was interrupted by a lack of restraint and that was exploited. Virtue in relationship to culture is dependent upon how morality is practiced with restraint. The question that might be put to President Clinton in hindsight is whether or not the sacrifice of his social goals was worth the expression of his personal need that pulled him from his path. A question that must be asked about the path or the Way is whether or not social reform is reasonable when a culture has rites and traditions that are contrary to the common good. Most of what Confucius writes discusses the idea that a person must be respectful and accepting of tradition. When is it virtuous, then, to come into conflict with the past in order to right wrongs that have been handed down through decades of wrongful doing by a society? What comes to mind are the civil rights movements of the 1960s where the break with tradition and culture was inspired by the many wrongs that had been committed throughout the years against women and minorities. The development of a new system of social structure came at the cost of many of the traditions and rites that once were more respectful within the Unites States, but the development of new social ideals and the improvement of issues of equality were far more important. In considering that the concept of restraint was set aside during that time, the question that must be asked is whether or not the path of morality was the cost of the much more detrimental crimes of unequal states within the culture. Following the path of restraint and finding the Way in order to be virtuous is possible. It is an individual choice whether or not to come to that path, but it is through the spread of information, knowledge, and through the building of culture that this can be done. Most exclusive cultures that have a sense of this ‘Way’ are also oppressed. So it might be that the cost of a restrained and virtuous culture is oppression. The hope is that it can be achieved within a free society. The trick would have to be to find common goals so that the entire society will come to the place where the path to virtue can be achieved while still having the freedom to make choices even if they are different than the rest of society. That is really the definition of the Way. The Way is a series of choices about what behaviors a society will and will not accept and having the positive incentives to abide by those choices and stay on the path. The benefits of the path need to outweigh the risk of going off of the path. It is utopian idealism that makes the idea of the path exist. The idea that all people could come together and agree on what is right and what is the path of virtue does not fully seem possible. The hope of the United States, and the ideology with which it was built, was that the civilized would come together to debate the issues that would then lead towards peaceful agreement on solutions to the problems of the nation. The idea was to find a virtuous state within the New World where freedom gave enough that right would be done. It was not the case. The existence of slavery, as an example, was too much wrong to allow for the right to exist. The idea of culture as a path on which to build virtue and moral good is utopian, but it would be ill advised to yet rule it out as a way in which to find peace. There are many outcomes to the current crises and would be nice to think that morality might be one of the ways that results in peace. It is possible that peace can be found through the morality of Confucius. The utopian nature of virtue, however, is the least likely outcome. Works Cited Kong, Qiu, and Edward G. Slingerland. Analects: With Selections from Traditonal Commentaries. Indianapolis, IN [u.a.: Hackett, 2003. Print. Ratliff, William E. The Selling of Fidel Castro: The Media and the Cuban Revolution. New Brunswick, U.S.A: Transaction Books, 1987. Print. Read More