A lingering question that has been on the minds of many individuals for centuries is “What is a good life”. In philosophy, one could consider the good life to be full of materialistic needs, wealth, family, or a love interest. To others, a good life could be to find inner peace and contentment within simple pleasures. In the “Good Life” reading six philosophers explored the idea of what a good life entailed and even though their philosophies shared many similarities they also had many differences. These philosophers were known as Upanishads, Herodotus, Confucius, Aristotle, Epicurus, and Marcus Aurelius. Created during rural times, their philosophies explained the lifestyles of much simpler people than today’s and most individuals were trying
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Confucianism is often characterized as a system of social and ethical philosophy rather than a religion. In fact, Confucianism was built on an ancient religious foundation to establish the social values, institutions, and transcendent ideals of traditional Chinese society. In other words Confucious used his philosophy to affirm the accepted values and norms of behavior in primary social institutions and basic human relationships. All human relationships involved a set of defined roles and mutual obligations; each participant should understand and conform to his/her proper role. He also believed that by an individual accepting their role it could condition them into acting rightly which would reform and perfect the society. The blueprint of this process was described in "The Great Learning," a section of the Classic of Rituals. There was, however, another side to Confucianism. Confucius not only stressed social rituals, but also humaneness. Confucious’s philosophy also stressed that sometimes humaneness translated love or kindness, as not any one virtue, but the source of all virtues. It was through humaneness that the philosopher discovered that a relationship between "two persons," or co-humanity could have the potential to live together
Confucianism is often characterized as a system of social and ethical philosophy rather than a religion. In fact, Confucianism was built on an ancient religious foundation to establish the social values, institutions, and transcendent ideals of traditional Chinese society. In other words Confucious used his philosophy to affirm the accepted values and norms of behavior in primary social institutions and basic human relationships. All human relationships involved a set of defined roles and mutual obligations; each participant should understand and conform to his/her proper role. He also believed that by an individual accepting their role it could condition them into acting rightly which would reform and perfect the society. The blueprint of this process was described in "The Great Learning," a section of the Classic of Rituals. There was, however, another side to Confucianism. Confucius not only stressed social rituals, but also humaneness. Confucious’s philosophy also stressed that sometimes humaneness translated love or kindness, as not any one virtue, but the source of all virtues. It was through humaneness that the philosopher discovered that a relationship between "two persons," or co-humanity could have the potential to live together