Why Is Confucianism Better than Legalism

Although Confucianism was later associated with Chinese civilization itself, the legalistic school before the founding of the unified empire was in many ways more influential than Confucian thought. Legalists were involved in the administration of many Chinese kingdoms, while Confucians were primarily teachers and scholars. Although Confucianism became an official orthodoxy, its influence on bureaucracy and state-building was relatively weak before the Han Dynasty (206 BC – 220 AD). In fact, Qin Shihuang (秦始皇, 260 – 210 BC), the emperor who first unified China in 221 BC. AD, was aided by legalistic scholars – not Confucians – in establishing his new state. According to legalistic doctrines, Qin Shihuang created a government bureaucracy, a military force, and a comprehensive tax system. However, due to the cruelty and tyranny of the emperor, the reputation of the legalistic school was damaged, as it was identified with punishment and the severity of the law as a tool of absolute imperial domination. During the Han Dynasty, Chinese emperors turned to Confucianism, a philosophy considered more humane and benevolent than the cold rationality of legalism. An enlightened ruler will administer his state in such a way as to reduce the number of merchants, craftsmen, and other men who earn their living wandering from place to place, and he will see to it that these men are despised. If a man who sits down and collects taxes earns twice as much as a peasant and enjoys greater honor than the ploughman or soldier, then ordinary men will become few in number, and the number of merchants and merchants will increase. These are the customs of a disordered state: its scholars praise the manners of previous kings and imitate their benevolence and justice, show a beautiful appearance and speak in elegant sentences, thus casting doubt on the laws of the time and dividing the ruler.

Their orators propagate false plans and borrow influence abroad, promoting their private interests and forgetting the welfare of state altars made of earth and grain. [11] A second lecture as part of the «Lecture Series on Chinese Studies Topics» for the 2020/21 academic year was held online on 10 December 2020. Professor Daniel A. Bell, Dean of the School of Political Science and Public Administration of Shandong University, Professor Bai Tongdong of the School of Philosophy of Fudan University, and Professor Zhu Suli of Peking University School of Law, spoke about «Confucianism vs. Legalism: Historical Perspective and Contemporary Implication». Associate Dean Brent Hass and Professor Lu Yang, Director of Graduate Studies, attended the conference. The four-hundred-year debate between Confucian and legalist thinkers about human nature and the role of government in economics reflects the ongoing intellectual debate between liberals and mercantilists that began with Adam Smith`s publication of The Wealth of Nations in 1776. Liberals, like Confucian thinkers, argued for a limited role for the state in the economy, while mercantilists, like legalists of the Warring States period, argued for an increased role for the state in the economy to ensure protectionism and control human nature. The interesting aspect is that this ongoing debate did not begin with Smith`s publication in 1776, but with The Analects of Confucius, published after his death in 479 BC. J.-C. This intellectual debate turned into an all-out intellectual war during the Warring States period, when legalists began to question the assumptions inherent in Confucian thought to explain the anarchy, chaos, and constant war in which they lived. The contributions of jurists cannot be overstated, as their writings became the tools used to unite the empire in 221 BC.

AD, ending the Warring States period. Moreover, the ongoing debate between liberals and mercantilists, which included notable figures such as Adam Smith, Friedrich List, Alexander Hamilton, and John Maynard Keynes, is an extension of the intellectual debate that took place between Confucians and legalists during the Warring States period until the founding of the Han Dynasty. This shows that a basic understanding and reading of history, including civilizations that may seem unknown, is essential to understanding the world today.