Confucianism vs.

Legalism: a Clash of
Philosophies
When the Qin Dynasty came to power in 221 BC, it found itself ruling over a land where
the teachings of Confucius had been spreading for almost 300 years. Qin attempted to
rule China using a new philopsophy, that of Legalism.

How did Confucianism and Legalism differ? What were their views on different
aspects of social, political, and familial issues? In the table below, compare and contrast
some the positions of Confucianism and Legalism on the topics indicated:

Aspect of Chinese society Confucianism Legalism

Government was extremely

important. A ruler had to be
good in order for his subjects
The role of the government to be good and obey him.
Government existed for the
benefit of the people, not the
other way around.
Relationships between People should love and
individuals in society respect each other (treat each Instead, they should spy on
other by the golden rule).
History and poetry are
Importance of traditional educational resources and
Chinese history and poetry people can study them to
further educate themselves.
Family always came first
Responsibility towards before anything. A
family son/daughter should do
his/her best to protect and
respect his/her family.
Social mobility As long as you study hard
and are a learned person,
then you can move up in
social class. A man should
not be born into power and
nobility, he should prove
himself worthy through how
The people are there to serve
the government. The
government comes before
everything in a Legalist
society.
The people should not focus
on being loving and caring.
everyone around them to
report any law breaking.
History and poetry didn't
help make the government
more powerful, therefore
they were useless and a
waste of people's time.
Family came second to
obeying the laws. One's duty
was to turn his or her family
members into the
government if one of their
family members broke a law.
You could change your
social status all depending on
how many heads you kill
during wars. The more, the
higher status you are.
 educated he is.

Religion wasn't practiced in

Religion is allowed to be
Confucianism. Confucius
practiced if it does not
believed that people should
Religion involve any behaviors that do
focus less on the
not benifit the state and
supernatural and spend more
support the same behaiviors
time working towards a
the government wants to
peaceful and caring society.
encourage.
He believed that of all things
Scholars and books that
someone could have,
disagreed with Legalists
education was the most
Education beliefs were destroyed.
important. "An emperor with
Legalists wanted people to
no education is no better
think the same way and not
than a peasant with
gain too much knowledge.
education."
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+a+Clash+of+Philosophies

Beliefs of Confucianism:

Confucianism is a philosophical system developed around the teachings of Confucius.

This 'way of life' address the complexities and idealism behind human morality, and the
value of righteous action. Confucianism comprises social, moral, political, and quasi-
religious ideals that have had tremendous influence over the cultures of the Orient. The
trend of governmental promotion of these values, and the importance of education with
regards to individual moral development in China, Japan, Taiwan, Korea and Vietnam,
are products of Confucianism. This system of philosophy emphasizes on the individual
and state as 'bound by moral virtue rather than coercive law'.

Although Confucius' ideas on morality and ethics were not accepted during his lifetime,
the 'recollections' passed down generations made a great impact on successive kingdoms
in China and other parts of the Orient. Confucianism propounds that a head, of a family
or kingdom, is a mere figurehead. He rules from within a vacuum of power, incessantly
striving to establish military and political dominance. However, the presence of the right
legal principles throughout the family or empire sustain the nature of the unit, with every
subsequent victory. The Master believed that individuals who are guided via edicts and
kept on path with the help of punitive action do not develop a sense of shame. However,
if they are guided by virtue and governed with accountability, they develop a sense of
shame and the need for reform.

Confucianism declares that all human nature is essentially perfect and good. This stream
of philosophy does not believe in the exposure to rites or extreme statism. Individual and
state control over every human activity,within the dictates of metaphysics, and an
unorthodox doctrine of radical thinking, are the strongholds of Confucianism. Confucius
believed that people led by administrative injunctions develop a sense of self worth that is
devoid of a sense of shame. Confucianism preaches that with the right leadership, people
can conduct themselves harmoniously. The philosophy demarcates legalism and ritualism
within the realm of individual accountability.

The 'Analects of Confucius' comprises short passages. The sayings or reasoning are not
deductive in nature, nor directed towards convincing the reader. Confucianism is
propounded via rhetoric use of analogy and aphorism, drawn on a time and space related
cultural milieu. This is the main reason why, in the Occident, Confucianism needs
detailed interpretation. Confucianism today is a political and ethical doctrine that fights
contemporary ideas and seeks to gain confidence through the power of reasoning and
debate. The Confucian relies on politeness and propriety to earn a place in society. This
'way of life' stands on the pillars of duty, internalization and social correctness.

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/beliefs-of-confucianism.html
Legalism
Founded by: Han Feizi, Shangzi Like Daoism, Legalism had no single
founder but instead, a couple of people who had similar ideas. Han Feizi, as a
student, was taught in the Confucian tradition. Because of a problem with stuttering, he
did not go the way most wandering philosophers of this age did: making the rounds of
kings' courts and making speeches. Instead, he wrote. His book, the Han Feizi, brought
him some prominence during his life and ended up being the main text of the school of
Legalism. Han Feizi died as a result of political intrigue in 233 BC, but Legalism would
go on to become the philosophy which finally managed to unify China.
Shangzi (Gungsun Yang) also contributed to Legalism. He traced the cause of the
chaos of the time back to a growing population. According to him, this caused a scarcity
of resources which led to war and strife. Shangzi saw a strong government according to
law as the solution to the problem.

fa jia fa: law Summary of the Philosophy jia: school (of thinking) Legalism
holds law as the supreme authority. There are three components to Legalism: fa
(law), shi (legitimacy), and shu (arts of the ruler).
click here to go Home fa The law. Previously, the law was pretty much at the discretion
of the ruler. No one was really sure what the law was, since the ruler could make and
change the rules as he saw fit. Supposedly, this was to give the ruler the opportunity to
show benevolence in certain circumstances. But obviously, this system made for easy
corruption.

In Legalism, the law code was written out and made public. All people under the ruler
were equal in the eyes of the law. In addition, the system of law ran the state, not the
ruler. The ruler and his ministers were simply parts of the state machine--a machine
which would ideally run so well that no matter how unworthy the ruler was, the laws
would still keep the state going. Laws were enforced by strict reward/punishment.
Daoism

Confucianism shi Legitimacy of Rule. Unlike other philosophies, which sought out the
wise and virtuous to rule, Legalism puts the emphasis on the power of the position, not
the person filling it. Legalism is a pessimistic philosophy--while conceding that it would
be wonderful to have a sage for ruler, the reality was that there just weren't many sages
around. The practical thing would be to have a system where even an average man could
rule and the state would stay intact. Keeping order was the first priority.

In other words, whoever was ruler was powerful because the position held power, not
because the person possessed any special qualities. shu Discussions of morality and
human nature are irrelevant in Legalism. Benevolence has no place in ruling a state
because unless people are ruled by a strong, strict hand, they grow lazy and disrespectful
of authority. Policies based on benevolence might work for the short term, but inevitably
led to disorder and failure.

Daoism and Confucianism looked to the past as the ideal and tried to recreate the past.
Confucius' rituals came from the Zhou Dynasty and the Dao is the original state of all
things. Legalism disregards the past--conditions were different back then, so what
worked back then would not necessarily work in the present time. Major Text
Han Feizi The Han Feizi is considered the main text of Legalism. It is a
comprehensive guide to ruling directed at kings. It consists of 55 chapters, each with its
own theme. Some chapters are, strangely enough, Daoist in style, others deal with xing
ming, and others tell the ruler what pitfalls to avoid while running a state.

Many of the chapters contain lists of specific things to avoid (the 8 Villainies, the 5
Vermin, the 10 Faults), such as putting too much trust in your ministers and concubines,
or offending more powerful states. Others discuss techniques of ruling--"Two Handles"
talks about power over reward and punishment as the key to staying in power. If the ruler
lets go of this power, he puts himself in danger of losing order in his state. ...rewards
should be rich and certain so that the people will be attracted by them;
punishments should be severe and definite so that the people will fear them; and
laws should be uniform and steadfast so that the people will be familiar with
them. Consequently, the sovereign should show no wavering in bestowing
rewards and grant no pardon in administering punishments, and he should add
honor to rewards and disgrace to punishments--when this is done, then both the
worthy and the unworthy will want to exert themselves... --Han Feizi (from Sources
of Chinese Tradition, Vol. 1, trans. and ed. Wm. Theodore de Bary. Columbia University Press
(USA: 1960).) Analysis Legalism achieved what all the other philosophies strove for--
unification of China. The Qin Dynasty, operating under the Legalist philosophy, finally
unified China in 221 BC. In this light, Legalism was a success. However, the Qin
Dynasty dissolved only 14 years after its founding. The Qin emperor was ruthless in his
use of Legalism, punishing even small crimes with decapitation or the loss of a hand or
foot. Books and scholars which held beliefs against Legalism (such as Confucianism)
were destroyed. The people were heavily taxed and forced into labor on major
government projects. He successfully put the fear and respect of the law and government
into the people, but it was too much. After his death, a combination of plotting ministers
and peasant rebellions caused the end of Legalism as the ruling philosophy of China.

The harshness of the Legalist Qin would be remembered afterwards, and in response the
following dynasty, the Han, distanced itself from Legalism and made its main rival,
Confucianism the official philosophy. So although many parts of Legalism seem to make
good sense (such as equality under the law, and government according to merit),
memories of the abuse of the law under the Qin has kept Legalism in a bad light
throughout Chinese history.

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