A Critique of Confucian Morality - 1601 Words

A Critique of Confucian Morality For many centuries, Confucianism has been widely revered by the Chinese for its emphasis on morality. Confucius, who lived from 551 to 479 BCE, is different to most philosophers in that he showed no interest questioning his existence, the possibility of a God, or the reality that he seemed to live in; instead he focused on the human relations side of philosophy as it was his belief that people should â€Å"give (themselves) earnestly to the duties due to men †¦ (and) keep aloof from (spiritual beings)† (Confucius 195). By negating the metaphysical side of philosophy, he was able to devote himself to mold his disciples into ideal gentleman who were morally righteous, and were able to benefit society. He†¦show more content†¦Confucius defined filial piety as â€Å"not being disobedient†. One of his disciples said that those who were filial were afraid of â€Å"offending †¦ their superiors† (Confucius 124). Rebelliousness against what is expe cted leads to breakthroughs and if one is forced to listen to his parents and carry out their wishes, they will not be able to do so. There have been many instances of those who have spoken out against authoritative figures for their own rights, and because of this, their lives were able to change for the better. Parents should be a guide, but the deference that the youth is expected to have will make them into a mere extension of their parents, with no independent thought for themselves, knowledge of how to think for their own or speak up against what is wrong. Therefore, one should be wary of absolute filial piety as seen in countries that adopt Confucian philosophies; freedom is not as attainable as in the West. In addition, Confucianism does not place importance on the role of the female in society. Modern Western philosophy is very egocentric and the rights of each individual matters. However, in traditional Confucian philosophy, these rights are less significant; the importanc e of the individual comes from the role he plays in society. In the five hierarchal relationships, four out of the five are superior-inferior relationships; only one is reciprocal. OneShow MoreRelatedChinese Philosophy Encompasses A Myriad Of Philosophies1441 Words   |  6 Pagesphilosophies that speak on religion, human nature, tradition, how to govern and essentially how to live. Among these collections of schools of thought are Confucianism and Toaism. While there exists both similarities and differences between the Confucian sage and the Taoist sage their political beliefs communicate different methods of achieving a prosperous and ethical state. However, based on the apparent adaptability and separation from potentially inadequate socially imposed structures, the philosophicalRead MoreWhat The Confucian Ideas And Practices Are Essay1916 Words   |  8 Pagesto address the main problem presented by the question I will first give a brief outline of what the Confucian ideas and practices are. I will then do as the question asks and evaluate the critique, I will do this by going on to decide how valid I believe the critique to be and proposing some responses to it to see how the critique really holds up, before going on to discuss some alternative critiques and whether I see them to be more valid. So to begin some context, Confucius was born in 551Read MoreMichelle Hudson. Hist 3338: Psa 1. Dr. Fan. 02/18/2017.1219 Words   |  5 Pagestypically the emperor, has the right to rule the divine power. However, â€Å"Medicine† dichotomizes traditional Chinese culture by ridiculing that their really isn’t an essential culture. 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While in Japan studying medicine LuRead More Critique of Kohlberg’s Claim of Cultural Moral Universality Essay3481 Words   |  14 PagesCritique of Kohlberg’s Claim of Cultural Moral Universality    Introduction As the American Heritage Dictionary plainly states, morality is a system of ideas of right and wrong conduct (American Heritage Dictionary 2000). People have been researching the development of this sense of morality for centuries. There is great debate over how a person’s morality is formed and then how to categorize one person’s level of morality compared to others. Most researchers believe that people reach differentRead MoreSocrates And Confucius As Teachers3484 Words   |  14 Pageseducate them. This idea of Socrates as the horse fly that stings Athens into awareness, is the most wide spread understanding of his character and his mission as a philosopher. For Socrates, the most dangerous thing to the soul, the state, and human morality was ignorance. 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