Confucianism

• Founded on Confucius’ (551-479 BCE) teachings
  • Most famous Chinese philosopher
  • Grew up impoverished → learned from feudal practices
  • Watched what higher-ups did, learned how to copy
  • Never wrote down his teachings
  • Students wrote it down in the Analects: book compiling all his principles
    • Became foundation for social life in China
    • Philosophy centered around it
• Government + society grounded in Confucianism thought
  • Basic order in the universe
  • Natural harmony linking man + nature + cosmos
  • Man = naturally social
    • Five relationships with reciprocity
    • Ruler
    • Husband
    • Parent
    • Elder brother
    • Friend
  • Filial piety = children’s devotion to parents
  • Family = primary social unit
    • Caused society to view government ruler as “father” of the state
  • Ren = highest virtue
  • Humaneness/sense of relatedness to other persons
  • Dao = the right way/path
  • Following the correct virtues leads you in harmony with dao
  • Mandate of heaven = ruler gets authority from heaven → Heaven’s son
  • Rulers are supposed to help the state + people
    • Expectations = stability + wealth + population growth + good living conditions
  • All humans are essentially alike
  • Change throughout education + environment
    • Why Confucius stressed education
  • Man = naturally good
  • Affected government rule
    • Ruler’s main function = educating/transforming population using moral examples
    • Merit bureaucracy = civil service with elected officials with the best moral role modeling
    • Used civil service exams to choose candidates
• Fell into decline at the fall of the Han Dynasty (206 BCE - 220 AD)
  • Dormant for roughly 600 years

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