Han Fei

Han Fei Tzu: Legalism, is an ancient Chinese philosophy concerned with the art of rulership and the stability of the state. Along with hundreds of other philosophical schools, legalism emerged during the Warring States Period (453-422 BC), a time of intense political and intellectual turmoil. Unlike other schools of thought, legalism defined the strength of the state, through a system of punishments and rewards, propagated by common laws. Neither concerning itself with Confucian idealization of the past, or the morality of man, legalisms pragmatic system of governance, as best defined by Han Fei Zi, ended the hundreds of years of warfare and unified China. As aforementioned, Legalism was at the forefront of philosophical discourse during…

There are many different philosophies of government in China. This paper will be focused on the philosophies of earlier governments in China’s history, specifically the Qin and Han dynasties. This will also focus on the structure of their governments as well. Many questions will be answered about their structure and ideas, such as what do these philosophies address? How do these philosophies apply to governing a nation? What are the strengths and weaknesses of each? Other questions will be…

China’s name is zhōngguó. Zhōng means middle or central, and guó means country or nation. Together, they create the term “Middle Kingdom.” The Chinese believed themselves to be the center of the world, the most advanced civilization in existence, and anyone outside their civilization was a barbarian. The great rulers of the Zhou united the vast kingdom under their divine rule granted to them by the Mandate of Heaven. These strong rulers created an ideal of tiānxià, a kingdom united “all under…

Han Dynasty’s military was an invaluable resource to the success and power of the dynasty. Its large size due to forced recruiting made it a formidable force to oppose. The technological advances of its weaponry gave the soldiers an upper hand over their opponents. The military’s conquering skills gave China new resources to aide its economy and connect it with other cultures and empires. But, its powerful military would eventually play apart in the dynasty’s downfall. The Han Dynasty’s army was…

powerful Chinese empire emerged from east Asia. Unlike the Roman Empire world, the political ideas and teachings of imperial in china drew on the past teaching. They believed china was a single unified state ruled by a single sage/ emperor who was in between heaven and the human world an ancient pedigree. With the long period of political fragmentation, which is the time of warring state a single unified Chinese sate took form during the short Qin Dynasty led by its great leader shihungend.…

believed that Li, or ritual propriety, was the most vital principle for a healthy and whole society; his views on women were thereby also based on Li. Daoism, on the other hand, highlighted the harmony created by human beings and nature, where the founder Laozi consistently emphasized the importance of the Mother of the universe (Mushen). In other words, Daoism, compared with Confucianism, is more open-minded and even honors women, according to some interpretations. Legalism, more than the other…

The Qin Dynasty, which is considered the first dynasty of Imperial China, comes about not long after Li Si has the corrupt emperor Han Fei beheaded. The Qin Dynasty itself lasts only fifteen years, but it sets the stage for what will eventually lead to the formation of the Celestial Masters, the first recorded group of organized Daoists. Zhang Daoling, the founder of the Celestial Masters, makes two major adjustments to the Qin system which is still in use at this time; namely, he extends the…

virtue, and Yin, punishment. Virtue belongs to the sphere of mortality and punishment to the sphere of law. Punishment tends toward killing the people, whereas virtue tends toward their survival” (Cheng) The Five Elements are: metal, wood, water, fire, and earth, whish are the five principals of the universe originally compounded by the Greek philosophers but are essential to Chinese philosophy as well. After the death of Confucius, a few hundred years passed before Confucianism finally became a…

everyone knew what was expected of them. Within the family, the norm was to display the utmost respect and devotion to serving one’s ancestors while in their daily lives, it was expected that people always act with true virtue. The deep-rooted desire to attain perfect virtue paired with a blind obedience towards ancestors and figures of authority worked in perfect unison to mold and justify the authoritative political system at the origin of traditional Chinese history: the Shang Dynasty. For…

to be branded as a religion. A religion must be founded on its own exclusive religious beliefs. Confucianism does not dwell much on religious beliefs rather it focuses on ethical and acceptable ways of living. In this regard, it is safe to state that Confucianism is religiousoriented but it is not a religion. Surname 5 Works cited Lau, D. C. Mencius . Canada: Penguin Books Ltd. 1970. Lopez, Donald S. Religions of China in Practice . Princeton, NJ: Princeton Univ. Press, 1996. Print. Poo MooChou.…