Confucianism vs Legalism

Confucianism vs. Legalism: a Clash of Philosophies When the Qin Dynasty came to power in 221 BC, it found itself ruling over a land where the teachings of Confucius had been spreading for almost 300 years. Qin attempted to rule China using a new philopsophy, that of Legalism. How did Confucianism and Legalism differ? What were their views on different aspects of social, political, and familial issues? In the table below, compare and contrast some the positions of Confucianism and Legalism on the topics indicated: Aspect of Chinese society

Confucianism

Government was extremely important. A ruler had to be good in order for his subjects The role of the government to be good and obey him. Government existed for the benefit of the people, not the other way around. Relationships between individuals in society

Social mobility

The people are there to serve the government. The government comes before everything in a Legalist society.

The people should not focus People should love and on being loving and caring. respect each other (treat each Instead, they should spy on other by the golden rule). everyone around them to report any law breaking.

History and poetry are Importance of traditional educational resources and Chinese history and poetry people can study them to further educate themselves.

Responsibility towards family

Legalism

Family always came first before anything. A son/daughter should do his/her best to protect and respect his/her family. As long as you study hard and are a learned person, then you can move up in social class. A man should not be born into power and nobility, he should prove himself worthy through how

History and poetry didn't help make the government more powerful, therefore they were useless and a waste of people's time. Family came second to obeying the laws. One's duty was to turn his or her family members into the government if one of their family members broke a law. You could change your social status all depending on how many heads you kill during wars. The more, the higher status you are.

educated he is.

Religion

Religion wasn't practiced in Confucianism. Confucius believed that people should focus less on the supernatural and spend more time working towards a peaceful and caring society.

Religion is allowed to be practiced if it does not involve any behaviors that do not benifit the state and support the same behaiviors the government wants to encourage.

He believed that of all things Scholars and books that someone could have, disagreed with Legalists education was the most beliefs were destroyed. Education important. "An emperor with Legalists wanted people to no education is no better think the same way and not than a peasant with gain too much knowledge. education." http://sasasianhistory.wetpaint.com/page/Confucianism+vs.+Legalism: +a+Clash+of+Philosophies

Beliefs of Confucianism: Confucianism is a philosophical system developed around the teachings of Confucius.

This 'way of life' address the complexities and idealism behind human morality, and the value of righteous action. Confucianism comprises social, moral, political, and quasireligious ideals that have had tremendous influence over the cultures of the Orient. The trend of governmental promotion of these values, and the importance of education with regards to individual moral development in China, Japan, Taiwan, Korea and Vietnam, are products of Confucianism. This system of philosophy emphasizes on the individual and state as 'bound by moral virtue rather than coercive law'. Although Confucius' ideas on morality and ethics were not accepted during his lifetime, the 'recollections' passed down generations made a great impact on successive kingdoms in China and other parts of the Orient. Confucianism propounds that a head, of a family or kingdom, is a mere figurehead. He rules from within a vacuum of power, incessantly striving to establish military and political dominance. However, the presence of the right legal principles throughout the family or empire sustain the nature of the unit, with every subsequent victory. The Master believed that individuals who are guided via edicts and kept on path with the help of punitive action do not develop a sense of shame. However, if they are guided by virtue and governed with accountability, they develop a sense of shame and the need for reform. Confucianism declares that all human nature is essentially perfect and good. This stream of philosophy does not believe in the exposure to rites or extreme statism. Individual and state control over every human activity,within the dictates of metaphysics, and an unorthodox doctrine of radical thinking, are the strongholds of Confucianism. Confucius believed that people led by administrative injunctions develop a sense of self worth that is devoid of a sense of shame. Confucianism preaches that with the right leadership, people can conduct themselves harmoniously. The philosophy demarcates legalism and ritualism within the realm of individual accountability. The 'Analects of Confucius' comprises short passages. The sayings or reasoning are not deductive in nature, nor directed towards convincing the reader. Confucianism is propounded via rhetoric use of analogy and aphorism, drawn on a time and space related cultural milieu. This is the main reason why, in the Occident, Confucianism needs detailed interpretation. Confucianism today is a political and ethical doctrine that fights contemporary ideas and seeks to gain confidence through the power of reasoning and debate. The Confucian relies on politeness and propriety to earn a place in society. This 'way of life' stands on the pillars of duty, internalization and social correctness.

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/beliefs-of-confucianism.html

Legalism Founded by: Han Feizi, Shangzi Like Daoism, Legalism had no single founder but instead, a couple of people who had similar ideas. Han Feizi, as a student, was taught in the Confucian tradition. Because of a problem with stuttering, he did not go the way most wandering philosophers of this age did: making the rounds of kings' courts and making speeches. Instead, he wrote. His book, the Han Feizi, brought him some prominence during his life and ended up being the main text of the school of Legalism. Han Feizi died as a result of political intrigue in 233 BC, but Legalism would go on to become the philosophy which finally managed to unify China. Shangzi (Gungsun Yang) also contributed to Legalism. He traced the cause of the chaos of the time back to a growing population. According to him, this caused a scarcity of resources which led to war and strife. Shangzi saw a strong government according to law as the solution to the problem. fa jia fa: law Summary

of the Philosophy jia: school (of thinking) Legalism

holds law as the supreme authority. There are three components to Legalism: fa (law), shi (legitimacy), and shu (arts of the ruler). click here to go Home

fa The law. Previously, the law was pretty much at the discretion

of the ruler. No one was really sure what the law was, since the ruler could make and change the rules as he saw fit. Supposedly, this was to give the ruler the opportunity to show benevolence in certain circumstances. But obviously, this system made for easy corruption. In Legalism, the law code was written out and made public. All people under the ruler were equal in the eyes of the law. In addition, the system of law ran the state, not the ruler. The ruler and his ministers were simply parts of the state machine--a machine which would ideally run so well that no matter how unworthy the ruler was, the laws would still keep the state going. Laws were enforced by strict reward/punishment. Daoism Confucianism

shi Legitimacy of Rule. Unlike other philosophies, which sought out the

wise and virtuous to rule, Legalism puts the emphasis on the power of the position, not the person filling it. Legalism is a pessimistic philosophy--while conceding that it would be wonderful to have a sage for ruler, the reality was that there just weren't many sages around. The practical thing would be to have a system where even an average man could rule and the state would stay intact. Keeping order was the first priority. In other words, whoever was ruler was powerful because the position held power, not because the person possessed any special qualities. shu Discussions of morality and

human nature are irrelevant in Legalism. Benevolence has no place in ruling a state because unless people are ruled by a strong, strict hand, they grow lazy and disrespectful of authority. Policies based on benevolence might work for the short term, but inevitably led to disorder and failure. Daoism and Confucianism looked to the past as the ideal and tried to recreate the past. Confucius' rituals came from the Zhou Dynasty and the Dao is the original state of all things. Legalism disregards the past--conditions were different back then, so what worked back then would not necessarily work in the present time. Major

Text

Han Feizi The Han Feizi is considered the main text of Legalism. It is a comprehensive guide to ruling directed at kings. It consists of 55 chapters, each with its own theme. Some chapters are, strangely enough, Daoist in style, others deal with xing ming, and others tell the ruler what pitfalls to avoid while running a state. Many of the chapters contain lists of specific things to avoid (the 8 Villainies, the 5 Vermin, the 10 Faults), such as putting too much trust in your ministers and concubines, or offending more powerful states. Others discuss techniques of ruling--"Two Handles" talks about power over reward and punishment as the key to staying in power. If the ruler lets go of this power, he puts himself in danger of losing order in his state. ...rewards should be rich and certain so that the people will be attracted by them; punishments should be severe and definite so that the people will fear them; and laws should be uniform and steadfast so that the people will be familiar with them. Consequently, the sovereign should show no wavering in bestowing rewards and grant no pardon in administering punishments, and he should add honor to rewards and disgrace to punishments--when this is done, then both the worthy and the unworthy will want to exert themselves... --Han Feizi (from Sources of Chinese Tradition, Vol. 1, trans. and ed. Wm. Theodore de Bary. Columbia University Press (USA: 1960).)

Analysis Legalism achieved what all the other philosophies strove for--

unification of China. The Qin Dynasty, operating under the Legalist philosophy, finally unified China in 221 BC. In this light, Legalism was a success. However, the Qin Dynasty dissolved only 14 years after its founding. The Qin emperor was ruthless in his use of Legalism, punishing even small crimes with decapitation or the loss of a hand or foot. Books and scholars which held beliefs against Legalism (such as Confucianism) were destroyed. The people were heavily taxed and forced into labor on major government projects. He successfully put the fear and respect of the law and government into the people, but it was too much. After his death, a combination of plotting ministers and peasant rebellions caused the end of Legalism as the ruling philosophy of China. The harshness of the Legalist Qin would be remembered afterwards, and in response the following dynasty, the Han, distanced itself from Legalism and made its main rival, Confucianism the official philosophy. So although many parts of Legalism seem to make good sense (such as equality under the law, and government according to merit),

memories of the abuse of the law under the Qin has kept Legalism in a bad light throughout Chinese history. http://www.geocities.com/Tokyo/Springs/6339/Legalism.html