(credit: “Confucius Statue at the Yushima Seido” by Abasaa/Wikimedia Commons, Public Domain)Ĭonfucius is credited with authoring or editing the classical texts that became the curriculum of the imperial exams, which applicants had to pass to obtain positions in government. ![]() He did not foresee that his work and ideas would influence society, politics, and culture in East Asia for over 2000 years.įigure 9.7 This statue of Confucius, the largest in the world, stands at the Yushima Seido, a Confucian temple in Japan. During his lifetime, Confucius despaired that his advice to rulers fell on deaf ears: “How can I be like a bitter gourd that hangs from the end of a string and can not be eaten?” (Analects 17:7). Confucius’s teachings centered on virtue, veering into practical subjects such as social obligations, ritual performance, and governance. After a political conflict with the hereditary aristocracy, Confucius resigned his position and began traveling to other kingdoms and teaching. ![]() ConfuciusĬonfucius (551–479 BCE) rose from lowly positions to become a minister in the government of a province in eastern China. Daoism and Confucianism would later spread to Japan, Korea, and Vietnam, where they would be adopted and changed in response to local social and cultural circumstances. Mohism, Daoism, and Confucianism developed in ancient China during this period. This period in China’s history is also sometimes referred to as the era of the “Hundred Schools of Thought” because the development of new philosophical approaches led to cultural expansion and intellectual development. New philosophical approaches were developed to promote social harmony, peace, and a better life. Warfare during this period was common because China was comprised of small states that were not politically unified. 475–221 BCE) was a period marked by warfare, social unrest, and suffering. ConfucianismĪs discussed earlier, the Warring States period in ancient China (ca. ![]() Confucians believe virtuous action is informed by social roles and relationships, such that promoting virtuous development also promotes social order. Though eudaimonia is often translated as “happiness,” it means something closer to “a flourishing life.” Confucianism, with its strong emphasis on repairing the fractured social world, connects the promotion of virtuous development and social order. In Justice as a Virtue, for example, Mark LeBar (2020) notes that “on the Greek eudaimonist views (including here Plato, Aristotle, the Stoics, and Epicurus) our reasons for action arise from our interest in a happy life.” The ancient Greeks thought the aim of life was eudaimonia. Through virtuous development, we realize and perfect ourselves, laying the foundation for a good life. There is often a connection between the virtuous life and the good life in virtue ethics because of its emphasis on character and self-cultivation. We become a good person, then, through the cultivation of character, self-reflection, and self-perfection. ![]() Whereas Mohists and utilitarians look to consequences to determine the rightness of an action and deontologists maintain that a right action is the one that conforms to moral rules and norms, virtue ethicists argue that right action flows from good character traits or dispositions. Virtue ethics takes a character-centered approach to morality.
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