ipl-logo

How Did Mencius Influence Early Chinese Government

463 Words2 Pages

It’s a little bit difficult to understand the cultural and political influences each of these men had on early Chinese government and society. From my understanding and what I’ve gathered from the reading. The main focus and point the Mencius is trying to make are this; In our human nature, we are naturally innocent and good. We are born good and we know what is right and what is wrong. He also had said that each of us has goodness inside of everyone, though that’s as individuals. But individuals together make up a greater portion and makes a society that should be changing what is good. Yet, the opposite is true as well. That if we as citizens don’t behave and create positive vibes, or influences others, it will cause bad morals and bad character. I think that Mencius was focused on creating a better person and from that, there will be good that …show more content…

The first story/analogy that was used, talked about how a King saw an ox that was going off be satisfied and he saw the sad countenance of the Ox, and without hesitation, he asked the servant to take the ox away and instead sacrifice a sheep. He did so that he would not have to see the face of the ox, therefore he was good. Xun Zi, said that is through ritual and practice that one can change and develop. He compares it to a nobleman being nourished and being fed. When he is fed correctly the good does come.
In relation to both of these men, Xun Zi ends up abounding his side and takin upside with the views and ways of Mencius. They each have the approach that affects their view of governing. I feel that Mencius is in the manner of governing oneself will ultimately allow others to follow in what is right. Though in contradicting or more so just differently Xun Zi believed that is was the ritual that the government will do things correctly, it practices that bring forth the good out of the evil in human

Show More
Related

  • AP World History: Guided Reading Questions

    2993 Words  | 12 Pages

    2. What is Confucius 's argument for virtue? They want to have a good leader and have faith on people and want people that follow rules. Ji said," What is killing good for?" Master knows that people will learn from that and will remember what they did wrong

    Read More

  • Daodejing Analysis

    501 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Daodejing, similar to the Analects, was written during the Warring State period, a time when the Zhou kingdom disintegrated into a series of feudal states fighting for power—a time of fragmentation and chaos. The Daodejing was written for Daoist, educated men, and people interested in Daoist teachings. The Daodejing was written to inform people, therefore, it was written as if speaking to a student. Laozi, the author of the Daodejing, although has no proof of existence, is believed to be a keeper of archives in the royal court and a teacher who travelled around China. The purpose of the Daodejing is to articulate Laozi’s ideas on Daosim and inform people about his philosophy.

    Read More

  • Confucianism In The Iliad

    2121 Words  | 9 Pages

    Confucius and his disciples believed that people had a natural sense of empathy and that we owed it to one another to be kind to each other. This is a really big belief in modern society as well. We are taught as children that we should be kind to one another and care of one another. This has been a teaching throughout the centuries of human existence, and this isn’t just mentioned in the writings of Confucius and his disciples it’s also in the writing of other literary works as well. The Bible tells it reads to, “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you,” (Ephesians 4:32).

    Read More

  • The Role Of Goodness In Elie Wiesel's Night

    492 Words  | 2 Pages

    Virtue, compassion, and benevolence are all qualities in our society that are considered good. In history, there are figures like Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr. that have displayed these characteristics, but then again, demonstrations of goodness are shown by people every day. Goodness or righteousness from people has always thrived, even in the worst periods of humanity. Therefore, mankind is inherently good as shown in Elie Wiesel’s novel Night, where this notion is illustrated through kind acts during his difficult times and through charities which give people hope.

    Read More

  • Pa Chin's Family Character Analysis

    634 Words  | 3 Pages

    Family by Pa Chin is a captivating novel that describes what life in China was like in the twentieth century. Confucianism, a big religion in China at the time, was heavily focused on filial piety. Filial piety is the relationship of obedience, in which the elders are to be respected by the younger generation (Wu, lecture notes, 2015). This religion was one of the main structures on how the society was ran. Chin represents how the younger generation was upset with how the old traditions of the Confucian system were ran and that they were ready to change it.

    Read More

  • Differences Between Mencius And Hsun Tzu

    797 Words  | 4 Pages

    However, can’t it be both? Both Mencius and Hsun Tzu can be right, there are millions of people in the world and some are good and some are evil,“If you plant the seeds carefully at the same time and in the same place, they’ll all sprout and grow ripe by summer solstice. If they don’t grow the same it 's because of inequities in richness of soil, amounts of rainfall, or the care given them by farmers” (Mencius 81). Some may be evil but react to what they’ve done and changed to good. Others may be good but have been hurt and chose to be evil.

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics

    1025 Words  | 5 Pages

    This principle lies at the heart of the great-souled man, the first of Aristotle’s peaks of humanly excellence. The great-souled man is chiefly concerned with—and strikes the mean with—external goods. The greatest of these goods is “the one that we assign to the gods, and at which people of high standing aim most of all, and which is the prize given for the most beautiful deeds; and of this kind is honor” (67:1123b19-21). A man who has achieved greatness of soul is deserving of great honors, but more importantly, he understands his own desert and acts appropriately.

    Read More

  • Henry David Thoreau And Confucius Comparison

    470 Words  | 2 Pages

    Many of his teachings implemented filial piety, or in a broader sense, the relationships between man and society. Confucius often examines the duty of one man being ruled by a government. Yet, he focuses on a balance between individuals and government, suggesting that they maintain a symbiotic relationship. Confucius explores the role one plays in society, and vice versa.

    Read More

  • Aristotle Compare And Contrast Confucius And Lao Tzu

    576 Words  | 3 Pages

    As Confucius states, “if good men were to govern the domain for a hundred years, they could wipe out violence and put an end to killing,” (Analects 90). While Aristotle and Confucius disagreed on the role of law in society—Aristotle thought that laws could make people moral where Confucius thought that if people could respect their leaders, then they would try to emulate them—the ideas of the two are more similar than they are

    Read More

  • Comparing Dao In Confucianism And Daoism

    462 Words  | 2 Pages

    t Comparing the Dao in Confucianism to the Dao in Daoism, similarities or differences Dao in Confucianism represents the entire normative human order. The Dao in Daoism antedates Tian and acts as the basis of the natural order. While in Confucian Dao they hold the ideal political-social-ethical order ordained by tian for the people. Confucianism encourages their perfectibility through self-effort the teaching of ethics and good movement. The primacy of the Confucian Dao requires superior human beings, sages and men of virtue to exert their highest effort to actualized its ideal design.

    Read More

  • Comparing Qin Shi Huangdi And Caesar Augustus

    1096 Words  | 5 Pages

    Qin and Caesar had numerous ways which showed the way they established their political authority and justification to lead. To show his political authority, Qin “created regulations and made laws intelligent.” By establishing

    Read More

  • Compare And Contrast Confucius And Mencius

    1353 Words  | 6 Pages

    Although both Confucius and Mencius have a lot in common with regards to governance, the two do have varying opinions on certain matters such as the legitimacy when rulers are overthrown, and the relationship between the ruler and his people. In precedence to coming up with policies and administrative measures, one has to first consider the issue of human nature as it plays an essential role in the development of a state 's political system. In the Confucian philosophy, the belief is that goodness is innate in humans and that everyone shares this same trait [子曰：“性相近也，习相远也。”] (Analects, 17.2). Mencius further elaborated on this doctrine by stating that it is mankind’s natural tendency to be kind to others, just as water would naturally flow downwards (Mencius, 6A2).

    Read More

  • Plato And Confucius Similarities

    1085 Words  | 5 Pages

    There are two giants in the Axial Age of human history, Confucius and Plato, who are considered as the landmark in the oriental and western world. They are great philosophers, ideologists as well as excellent educators, whose thought have profound influence to the oriental and western world. Confucius’s ideas maintain authority for more than two thousand years, which have intimate connections with development of Chinese federal society. Even to this day, it still remains practical significance and reflects the glorious radiant. Plato’s doctrine is a source of Western political thought.

    Read More

  • Marcus's Sense Of Duty Analysis

    681 Words  | 3 Pages

    Marcus believes this is when good deeds are truly good because the good deed can be produced again without stipulations (5.6). When one practices a deed multiple times, after being taught the deed, one can eventually recreate said deed without much thought. If all members of a society were taught this way, good actions would be produced all the time. Marcus also thinks that it is possible for everyone to be virtuous. He says just because one doesn’t have the same skills as the strongest man or the same mind as the wisest elder, doesn’t mean one can’t learn to be like them or that one doesn’t any skill at all (5.5).

    Read More

  • Similarities Between Plato And Socrates

    984 Words  | 4 Pages

    If a person knows what is ‘good’, then their manner of behaviour will always be good, as they possess the knowledge of how to do so. If a person acts in a ‘bad’ or evil way, this is simply because they lack the knowledge of how to act in a virtuous manner. For Socrates, it was simply a case of knowledge being conducive to good behaviour, and ignorance being conducive to bad behaviour. No-one chooses to act in an evil way, according to Socrates. We aim for good behaviour but fall short of

    Read More

More about How Did Mencius Influence Early Chinese Government

Open Document