Confucianism doesn't make people sheep, Legalism does

Interesting interview this morning on NPR.  Jiang Rong is the author of Wolf Totem, a book which seems to open itself to various interpretations.  I was taken by this comment of Jiang's from this morning's interview:

"Confucianism wants people to become sheep. Its central tenet is obedience, following the emperor," Jiang explains. "In essence, the political system during the Cultural Revolution was the same as that of the last several thousand years: Both were autocratic, totalitarian and dictatorial."

I disagree.  Confucianism, especially in its Mencian guise, creates a moral standard, Humanity, that stands apart from imperial power and should be used to judge the actions of the Emperor.  Those in power should not, from a Confucian point of view, rule in a manner that contradicts Humanity.  And if they do rule inhumanely, then junzi (those people who work to cultivate and reproduce Humanity) are duty-bound to point out the ruler's flaws.

Confucianism thus creates a moral framework that inspires political critique. Good Confucians do not sheepishly follow bad rulers; rather, they speak out against inhumanity.

Mindless obedience to law and power is, of course, a product of Legalism. Harsh punishments ruthlessly inflicted upon the populace creates a fearful acceptance of political authority.  And that's what the institutionalization of Legalism produced over the centuries in China.  Indeed, it is no coincidence that Mao, the grand orchestrator of the chaos of the Cultural Revolution, also saw himself as a modern-day Qin.  The Cultural Revolution was deeply anti-Confucian.  Mao's politics were much more Legalist, precisely in the manner that Jiang stipulates: "autocratic, totalitarian and dictatorial."

Comments

[CP]

I'm not even sure if he's right about Confucianism in its "Confucius" guise. "Obedience" (zhong) doesn't just mean bowing one's head and sheepishly, and silently, going along with whatever one's superior wants.

[VicSQA]

In the history of China, Confucianism were used to sugarcoat the Legalism that underlie the Imperial rulers. Buddhist ideas were also part of the external face of the imperial ruling system.

[isha]

1.

http://www.webjb2.org/webjb/viewtopic.php?topic=21811&select=&forum=01

Have picture, have truth!

2.

On Human rights

http://blog.huanqiu.com/?uid-31274-action-viewspace-itemid-176636

众所周知现任美国国会众议院议长南希•佩洛西一直在中国问题上持强硬立场，“强力反华”就是佩洛西政治生涯中的重要从政资本。北京奥运会召开之际，佩洛西的“反华斗志”再一次强劲地表现出来，将自己置于抵制北京奥运会、支持达赖和藏独的风口浪尖，让人们见识了美国首位女议长在反华立场上的疯狂。佩洛西长期反华的最强音是人权问题。在其官方网站上有文字称：“佩洛西长期提倡世界各地的人权。她为改善中国的人权进行斗争，希望将贸易同改进人权标准挂钩。”

在中国，有人不愿意同国际社会谈人权问题？也有人同时认为谈人权有碍国家尊严？还有人一听人权问题就火冒三丈？笔者认为，人权怎么就不可以谈？谈嘛！不但要谈，还要大谈特谈，建议与佩洛西在以下几点展开对话：

1、关塔那摩监狱孽囚丑闻；2、以美国为首的阿富汗、伊拉克军事占领及干涉别国内政问题；3、美联储滥印钞票美元人为贬值向世界输出通胀问题；4、用强权政治在全球推销西方所谓“民主运动”问题等等，想谈的事情很多嘛。。。

我们还知道，美国最典型的特征是结盟、政治颠覆、制造混乱和发动战争，这才是地球上人权事业与世界和平惨遭破坏的最大威胁。而中国，至今也没有占领别国一寸土地，没有向别国派驻一兵一卒，国家昌盛，人民幸福，对世界做出了如此巨大的贡献，不说感慨吧？中国的人权记录值得表扬需要推崇，建议全球广而效之。

令外，美国右翼势力很害怕中国崛起，美军的敌对势力实行西化、分化中国的阴谋一直没有放松。作为人权卫士的佩洛西，难道一叶障目不见泰山，美国做了那么多对不起中国人的事情，在她的嘴里不但只字不提，还要吹毛求疵地批评中国？真不知道，美国式的双重标准，到什么时候才能停止？

最后，笔者提示世人，“实者示人虚，虚者示人实”这是中国先贤的一句话，今天白话过来就是，只有不讲人权的地方，才天天没完没了地对所谓地“人权问题”唠唠叨叨，真正讲人权的国度，一定是国富民强、安居乐业，人们就永远不会把人权问题，常挂嘴边。

3. From Elaine:

...

"Gradually, year by year, the two cultures, the communist Chinese and the US capitalist cultures are merging. This is most interesting since we are becoming more like the despotic system in China while they are liberalizing rapidly. Talk about cultural exchanges! Heh. Not one that many here expected when Nixon flew to China"

http://emsnews.wordpress.com/2009/05/26/gm-bankrutpcy-and-free-trade/

...

Isha

[CP]

A small comment from Xunzi:

"To follow the Tao and not one's lord, to follow righteousness and not one's father, is the greatest conduct."

Given that he's Han Fei's teacher, one might think him the most amenable to the kinds of rigid authoritarian legalism that some try to foist onto Confucianism.

Doesn't sound like it there.

[Li Shimin]

According to the Confucian scholars of traditional China, the way to proper rule is:

1. When Confucius became Prime Minister of Lu, his virtue was so great that all criminal activity magically ceased.

2. Make sure to observe the proper sacrifices and proper rituals properly.

3. Make sure the musical instruments are tuned correctly.

4. Observe Heavenly Portents.

5. When the relationships between father and son, brother and sister, minister and subject, king and minister etc., are properly observed, everything will be A-OK in the empire.

Is it any wonder that the emperors, having to run a vast, complex empire while negotiating the often vicious and byzantine maze of palace politics (kill your brothers or they will kill you), etc., usually turned to Han Feizi and the other legalists when it came to actually ruling the empire? Nothing unusual in that, of course. Machiavelli was also officially loathed and unofficially read and followed as well.