into a political and ethical doctrine.
Confucius thought that society could be saved by restoring the old habits, social relationships, and traditions of rulership from earlier dynasties. Social harmony would prevail if all people knew their place in the social order and played their parts well. Virtues should be taught and internalized through good habits, such as following rules of etiquette. Relationships should be governed by mutual respect and obligation between sovereign and subject, parent and child, elder and younger sibling, husband and wife, and friend and friend (as equals). Filial piety, or a child’s respect for his parents, should be matched by the parents’ benevolence and concern for the child. Similarly, the sovereign plays the role of a benevolent autocrat towards his subjects. He must develop himself sufficiently so that his personal virtue spreads a positive influence throughout the kingdom. If he does not behave humanely towards his subjects, he risks losing the Mandate of Heaven that gives him a right to rule, and the people no longer need to obey him.
Confucianism exhorts all people to strive to achieve the ideal of the “gentleman.” As a combination of a saint, scholar, and nobleman, a gentleman was expected to be a moral guide to the rest of society. He should embody internalized good habits and virtues, filial piety and loyalty, and humanity and benevolence. This concept of a “gentleman” gives greater symbolic significance to the group of classic painting subjects known as The Four Gentlemen: bamboo, orchid, plum blossom, and chrysanthemum. Each of these subjects embodies in some way the virtues of a gentleman.
Confucius saw that a virtuous farmer who cultivates himself can be a gentleman, while a selfish, disrespectful prince is a lowly person. Confucius allowed students of different classes to be his disciples, disregarding the feudal structures in Chinese society. He also fostered the idea of meritocracy, that virtue and talent could replace the nobility of blood. This idea ultimately led to the introduction of the Imperial Examination System in the Sui Dynasty in 605 CE. Literate individuals of the lower classes could raise their social status by becoming government officials. This in turn fostered an emphasis on education as a path towards upward mobility.
Confucianism as conveyed by Mencius was an idealistic philosophy based on the premise that people are inherently good. If they internalize patterns of virtuous behavior, they will behave properly to avoid shame and losing face.
The Confucian follower Xunzi (300–237 BCE) thought that people are not innately good but must attain goodness by training their desires and conduct. The practical weakness of the Confucian teachings is that fear of shame alone does not prevent those in positions of power from abusing their position for personal gain and engaging in corruption and nepotism. The implicit relationships between people are not reinforced by explicit contracts that formalize and enforce the rights of the less powerful.
Dynasties in Chinese History
Ancient
3 Sovereigns and 5 Emperors 2698 – 2070 BCE
Xia Dynasty 2100 – 1600
Shang Dynasty 1600 – 1046
Zhou Dynasty 1046 – 221
Western Zhou Dynasty 1046 – 771
Eastern Zhou Dynasty 772 – 221
Spring and Autumn Period 772 – 476
Warring States Period 475 – 221
Imperial
Qin Dynasty 221 – 206 BCE
Han Dynasty 206 BCE – 220 CE
Western Han Dynasty 206 BCE – 9 CE
Xin Dynasty 9 – 25 CE
Eastern Han Dynasty 25 – 220 CE
Three Kingdoms 220 – 280 CE
Wei, Wu, & Shu Han
Jin Dynasty 265 – 420
Western Jin 265 – 317
Eastern Jin 317 – 420
Southern and Northern Dynasties 420 – 581
Sui Dynasty 581 – 618
Tang Dynasty 618 – 907
5 Dynasties and 10 Kingdoms 907 – 960
Liao Dynasty 916 – 1125
Song Dynasty 960 – 1279
Northern Song Dynasty 960 – 1127
Southern Song Dynasty 1127 – 1279
Jin Dynasty 1115 – 1234
Yuan Dynasty 1271 – 1368
Ming Dynasty 1368 – 1644
Qing Dynasty 1644 – 1912
Modern
Republic of China 1912 – 1949
Republic of China (on Taiwan) 1945 – present
People’s Republic of China 1949 – present
Daoism (Taoism)
The origins of Daoism are attributed to Laozi (Lao Tzu or “Old Master”), who probably lived in the 6th century BCE, but possibly in the 3rd. He is traditionally called the author of the Dao De Jing (Tao Te Ching), the “Way of the Universe,” but it is more likely that others developed the text after him. In contrast to the Confucian focus on social structures and obligations, Daoism sought to bring people into harmony with the natural world, the rhythms of the universe, the cycles of the seasons, and the transitions between life and death.
The Dao was raised to the level of the cosmic principle, the formless, timeless, and limitless soul of the universe. When combined with the immaterial principle, the Qi or vital energy and breath, it created primary matter, from which all creation evolved. The yang male principle was diluted and formed the heavens, and the yin female principle coagulated and formed the earth. The yin and yang together constitute the Dao, the eternal principle of heaven and earth. The Qi energy that breathes life into creations was later seen by brush painters as the source of their own personal qi energy that would express through their brushwork and give life to the subjects of nature that they were depicting.
The universe is in constant flux as things happen spontaneously according to nature. Everything begins with the Dao and returns to it again. Against the Confucian overemphasis on the yang, willful activity and control of behavior, Daoism emphasized the yin, yielding to the Way of the Universe as the guideline for the individual and society. Discovering and accepting natural laws and not interfering with them should lead to social harmony and contentment.
Legalism
In the debates of the Hundred Schools of Thought, the School of Legalism ran against the idealism of Confucianism and Daoism. The doctrine, formulated by Han Feizi (d. 233 BCE) and Li Si (d. 208 BCE), saw humans as inherently selfish and needing external laws and harsh punishments if they perform illegal actions to keep society
